The Oprah Winfrey Charitable Foundation
Los Angeles, CA · EIN 26-6908382. Reported 82 grants totalling $87.3M to 56 recipients across tax years 2021-2024. This foundation told the IRS it does not accept unsolicited requests: it contributes only to organizations it selects itself.
Does this foundation accept applications?
No -- on its own tax return. Form 990-PF asks every private foundation to check a box if it "only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds". The Oprah Winfrey Charitable Foundation checked it on its most recent filing, as 78% of the 91,758 foundations in our data that made a grant and answered did. An unsolicited request is unlikely to go anywhere.
Organizations it funds that make grants of their own
4 of the organizations The Oprah Winfrey Charitable Foundation funded make grants themselves, and it reported 8 grants totalling $27.7M to them. That is 48% of the $57.9M of its giving we could match to a registered organization. Each is classified by the IRS as a philanthropy or grantmaking organization, reported grants to at least 25 organizations of its own, and has at least 10 funders behind it.
All of them file Form 990, which never asks whether an organization funds only groups it picks, so there is no answer on record either way.
What that does not mean. It does not mean an application to any of them reaches this foundation's money. A private foundation's grant to a community foundation or a federated campaign is often a donor-advised fund or a gift designated for a purpose the foundation chose, and has nothing to do with any open programme the receiving organization runs. Its return's purpose text sometimes names a family fund or a designated purpose, which is the plainest case of money no applicant can reach; where it names none, neither return says which. The list is who this foundation paid that also makes grants. Whether any of them would fund you is a question for its own page.
| Grantmaker | Kind | State | Received | Grants | Years | Last | Only funds organizations it picks? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entertainment Industry Foundation | federated giving programme | California | $27.1M | 2 | 2 | 2024 | Its form does not ask |
| California Community Foundation | community foundation | California | $400,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 | Its form does not ask |
| Gofundmeorg | grantmaking organization | California | $100,000 | 2 | 1 | 2021 | Its form does not ask |
| Social Impact Fund | grantmaking organization | California | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 | Its form does not ask |
A floor, not a full list. A grantmaker appears here only where this foundation's return named it clearly enough for us to match the name to an EIN, which we manage for about two thirds of 990-PF grant rows, and only where that grantmaker has a page on this site. There may be more. Dollars here are summed by EIN across every spelling on its returns, so a figure can differ from the matching row in the full list below, which groups names as written. And the IRS classification cannot tell a grantmaker from a funders' association or a donor-advised fund sponsor, so a payment to one of these may be dues or an account rather than support for a grants programme.
How big are its grants?
The median grant is $112,500. Half of everything it gave fell between $75,000 and $910,000; the smallest was $10,000 and the largest $18.2M.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Recipients are grouped by name and state as they were written on the returns, so an organization entered under two different names appears twice. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which that name received money.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ow Leadership Academy Foundation | Los Angeles, CA | $18.5M | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| The Entertainment Industry Foundation | Los Angeles, CA | $18.2M | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy Fdn | Los Angeles, CA | $16.1M | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Entertainment Industry | Los Angeles, CA | $8,919,077 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| US Dream Academy | Silver Spring, MD | $4,447,972 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Herrendorf Family Foundation | Chicago, IL | $3,349,900 | 7 | 2 | 2024 |
| Pathways to College | Teaneck, NJ | $1,651,715 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| National Cares Mentoring Movement Inc | New York, NY | $1,600,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Nationalcaresmentoringmovementinc | New York, NY | $1,200,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Academy Foundation | Beverly Hills, CA | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| La Paz Global | Portland, OR | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Maui Health Foundation | Wailuku, HI | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Miss Porter's School | Farmington, CT | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Sag Aftra Foundation | Los Angeles, CA | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Teach for America | New York, NY | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Whitaker Peace & Development Initiative | Cerritos, CA | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Omprakash Foundation-Humanity Crew | Seattle, WA | $770,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Pacific Birth Collective | Haiku, HI | $500,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Telluride Council for the Arts | Telluride, CO | $500,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| California Community Foundation | Los Angeles, CA | $400,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Minnie's Food Pantry | Plano, TX | $400,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Out for Justice | Baltimore, MD | $300,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Ka 'ike Mau Loa O Ke Kai Hohonu | Kailua, HI | $275,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Mana Maoli | Honolulu, HI | $250,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Mindfullness Leader Nfp | Chicago, IL | $250,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| American Performing Arts Collaborative | New York, NY | $200,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Ordinary Towards Extraordinary Foundation | Houston, TX | $200,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Project Hood Communities Development | Chicago, IL | $200,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Hollyrod Foundation | Los Angeles, CA | $150,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Women's Media Center | Washington, DC | $150,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Rush University Medical Center | Chicago, IL | $138,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| A Better Chance | New York, NY | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| African Women Rising | Santa Barbara, CA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Apollo Theater Foundation | New York, NY | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Edward Charles Foundation Aku's Mission | Beverly Hills, CA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Johnnetta Betsch Cole Legacy Foundation | Dover, DE | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Johns Hopkins University | Baltimore, MD | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Mindfulness Leader Nfp | Chicago, IL | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Social Impact Fund | Los Angeles, CA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Harlem School of the Arts Inc | New York, NY | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Unity Shoppe Inc | Santa Barbara, CA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Wellpoint Care Foundation Inc | Milwaukee, WI | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Women's Fund of Hawaii | Honolulu, HI | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Go Fund Me | Redwood City, CA | $90,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| She Ready Foundation | Burbank, CA | $75,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Na Koa Manu Conservation Inc | Pukalani, HI | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Riverside Renters | Atlanta, GA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Makai Foundation | Kihei, HI | $45,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Kamali'i Elementary School | Kihei, HI | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Halfthestory | Wester Springs, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Move Nyc Foundation Inc | New York, NY | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| New Museum of Contemporary Art | New York, NY | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Foster Youth Awareness | Los Angeles, CA | $10,924 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Chicagoland Mom Squad | Bolingbrook, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Dreams of Hope Foundation | Newport News, VA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Gofundmeorg | Redwood City, CA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
14 of 56 (25%) received money in more than one year over the 4 years we hold.
Measured the way we measure every foundation -- what share of one year's grantees are funded again the next -- this one retains 36%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is less consistent than most. This measures how often it paid the same organizations again. It says nothing about whether it would consider a new one, and this foundation told the IRS it does not.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose field of its filings. This is the closest thing to a statement of what this foundation cares about, in its own words.
- The Entertainment Industry Foundation
TO PROVIDE FUNDS DIRECTLY TO MEMBERS OF COMMUNITIES IN MAUI COUNTY, HAWAII WHO EXPERIENCED THE LOSS OF THEIR HOME DUE TO THE WILDFIRES. - The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy Fdn
FOR OPERATING EXPENSES FOR THE OPRAH WINFREY LEADERSHIP ACADEMY FOR GIRLS IN SOUTH AFRICA. - US Dream Academy
TRANSFORMATIVE MENTORING PROGRAM FOR YOUTH TO BUILD CHARACTER, SKILLS AND DREAMS IN A SAFE OUT OF SCHOOL TIME ENVIRONMENT. - Pathways to College
AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAM PROVIDING INFORMATION, GUIDANCE, AND SUPPORT TO UNDER-SERVED BECOME THE BEST HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS, COLLEGE APPLICANTS AND COLLEGE STUDENT PREPARE FOR LIFELONG SUCCESS. - Nationalcaresmentoringmovementinc
TO PROVIDE RESOURCES AND EXTEND SUPPORT TO CHILDREN WHOSE LIVES ARE IMPACTED BY ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL INEQUITIES. - National Cares Mentoring Movement Inc
TO HELP SUSTAIN AND GROW THE IMPACT OF NATIONAL CARES AND INCREASE ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS SUPPORTS TO YOUNG PEOPLE.
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 49 grants where we could match the recipient to a registered organization. The categories are the IRS's. The match, made from the name and address on the return, is ours.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 19 | $15.0M | $100,000 |
| 2022 | 14 | $11.3M | $119,250 |
| 2023 | 24 | $37.5M | $200,000 |
| 2024 | 25 | $23.4M | $150,000 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- filings arrive about a year late, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a foundation winding down.
Already committed for future years
Form 990-PF has a separate schedule for grants approved but not yet paid. The Oprah Winfrey Charitable Foundation has 5 of them, worth $1,044,328. This is the one part of the filing that looks forward rather than back.
| Organization | Location | Approved |
|---|---|---|
| Rush University Medical Center | Chicago, IL | $400,000 |
| Pathways to College | Teaneck, NJ | $261,500 |
| Ron Clark Academy | Atlanta, GA | $250,000 |
| California Community Foundation | Los Angeles, CA | $100,000 |
| Close Up Foundation | Arlington, VA | $32,828 |
Where its money goes
75% of its giving went to organizations in California.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These funders gave to organizations this one also funded -- some private foundations, some community foundations and other grantmaking charities. Shared grantees are a sign of overlapping priorities and nothing more. Unlike this foundation, none of them is on record as funding only organizations it picks, and each page says what its filings show.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from The Oprah Winfrey Charitable Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). Grant figures are from its returns. Matching recipients to registered organizations, their IRS classifications, the retention rate and the funders that support the same organizations are our own calculations, described in how we build this.
Address of record on the latest return: 2029 Century Park East Suite 1530N, Los Angeles, CA, 90067. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS.
EIN 26-6908382 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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