The Specter Foundation
Gladwyne, PA · EIN 38-7076393. Reported 318 grants totalling $18.1M to 171 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 Specter 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
3 of the organizations The Specter Foundation funded make grants themselves, and it reported 10 grants totalling $320,500 to them. That is 3% of the $10.7M 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? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jewish Federation of Greater | federated giving programme | Pennsylvania | $316,000 | 8 | 3 | 2024 | Its form does not ask |
| Federation of Jewish Communities of the | community foundation | New York | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 | Its form does not ask |
| The Ovarian Cancer Research Fund Inc | federated giving programme | New York | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 | 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 $3,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $1,250 and $10,000; the smallest was $100 and the largest $3,483,333.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Share Food Program Inc | Philadelphia, PA | $6,716,666 | 4 | 3 | 2023 |
| Sharefood | Philadelphia, PA | $3,508,333 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| US Squash | New York, NY | $1,450,000 | 4 | 2 | 2022 |
| UC Law San Francisco | La Jolla, CA | $1,013,000 | 4 | 2 | 2024 |
| Penn Charter School | Philadelphia, PA | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Drexel University | Philadelphia, PA | $532,813 | 4 | 2 | 2022 |
| US Squash Racquets Association | New York, NY | $475,000 | 4 | 2 | 2024 |
| University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, PA | $424,000 | 8 | 2 | 2022 |
| Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $316,000 | 8 | 3 | 2024 |
| Our Generation Speaks | Waltham, MA | $226,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, PA | $221,000 | 4 | 2 | 2024 |
| Brandeis University (our Generation Speaks) | Waltham, MA | $144,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Perelman Jewish Day School | Wynnewood, PA | $128,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Cambridge in America | New York, NY | $126,850 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Steel City Squash | Pittsburgh, PA | $105,000 | 2 | 1 | 2022 |
| Drexel University Fund | Philadelphia, PA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| National Council of Young Israel | Paramus, NJ | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Drueding Center | Philadelphia, PA | $95,000 | 5 | 3 | 2023 |
| Har Zion Temple | Penn Valley, PA | $93,700 | 6 | 4 | 2024 |
| Delaware Valley Friends School | Paoli, PA | $85,833 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Brandeis University | Waltham, MA | $60,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Tribe 12 | Philadelphia, PA | $53,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Federation of Jewish Agencies- General Campaign Fund | Philadelphia, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| William Penn Charter School | Philadelphia, PA | $45,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Haverford College | Haverford, PA | $40,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Squashbond | Washington, DC | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Orot | Melrose Park, PA | $38,600 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Birthright Israel Foundation | Philadelphia, PA | $36,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Squash and Education Alliance | New York, NY | $35,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Jewish National Fund | Philadelphia, PA | $26,100 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Anti-Defamation League Operating Account | New York, NY | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Federation of Jewish Agencies- Scan | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Federation of Jewish Agencies- Scn | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Holy Redeemer Health Systems Dev Dept | Huntingdon Valley, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Maccabi USA | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 5 | 3 | 2024 |
| The Garden of Reflection | Yardley, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Rcop Fund | Philadelphia, PA | $20,325 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| America Gives | New York, NY | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| UC Hastings Foundation | San Francisco, CA | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Children First | Philadelphia, PA | $18,500 | 4 | 3 | 2024 |
| Philadelphia Museum of Art | Philadelphia, PA | $17,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| America-Israel Democracy Coalition | Bryn Mawr, NY | $16,000 | 2 | 1 | 2023 |
| Jewish Federation Embark Philly | Philadelphia, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Racquet Club of Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Squash Dreamers | San Diego, CA | $13,000 | 5 | 3 | 2024 |
| Squashdrive | Emeryville, CA | $12,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Har Zion | Penn Valley, PA | $11,300 | 3 | 1 | 2023 |
| Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger | Philadelphia, PA | $11,000 | 4 | 3 | 2023 |
| Americashare | New York, NY | $10,497 | 4 | 2 | 2023 |
| College Squash Association | Boston, MA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Drexel Squash | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Federation of Jewish Agencies - Jfcs | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Federation of Jewish Agencies- Birthright | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Philadelphia Futures | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Philadelphia Museum of Art (associates Membership) | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Philadephia University | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 2 | 1 | 2021 |
| Project Home | Keene, NH | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Thomas Jefferson University | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Zionist Organization of America | New York, NY | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Jewish Relief Agency | Philadelphia, PA | $9,600 | 3 | 2 | 2023 |
| Coalition Against Hunger | Philadelphia, PA | $9,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| The Friendship Circle | Philadelphia, PA | $8,600 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Vetri Community Partnership | Philadelphia, PA | $8,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| American Friends of Leket Israel | Teaneck, NJ | $7,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Dvfs | Paoli, PA | $7,500 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Habitat for Humanity Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $7,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Heights Philadelphia | New Rochelle, NY | $7,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Jewbelong | Upper Montclair, NJ | $7,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Leket Israel | Teaneck, NJ | $7,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Mission Kids Child Advocacy Center | East Norriton, PA | $7,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Chabad Haverford | Philadelphia, PA | $6,800 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Chabad Serving Drexel University | Philadelphia, PA | $6,100 | 3 | 2 | 2024 |
| Children Crisis Treatment Center | Philadelphia, PA | $6,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Lbi Jewish Community Center | Spray Beach, NJ | $6,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Long Beach Island Jcc | Spray Beach, NJ | $6,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Barrack Family Hebrew Academy | Mawe, PA | $5,800 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Philadelphia Friendship Circle | Philadelphia, PA | $5,400 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| American Friends of Libi | Brighton, MA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Barrack Hebrew Academy | Mawe, PA | $5,000 | 2 | 1 | 2022 |
| Chatham University | Pittsburgh, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Children's Crisis Treatment Center (cctc) | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Emily's Entrourage | Ardmore, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Federation of Jewish Agencies- Jnf | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Federation of Jewish Agencies- Jra | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Federation of Jewish Agencies- Moishe House | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Hias Philadephia | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Jewish Family & Children's Service of Greater Philadelphia | Bala Cynwyd, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Kleinlife | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Koresh | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Koresh Dance Comapny | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Mikhail Rudyak Fund | Brookliine, MA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Mission Kids Child Advocacy Center of Montgomery County | East Norriton, PA | $5,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Penn Hillel | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Release Recovery Foundation | New York City, NY | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Seder for Ukraine Humanitarian Foundation | Saddle Brook, NJ | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Sharing Excess | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Squash Enginedrive | Chestnut Hill, MA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Terrell L Bruce Memorial Fund | San Diego, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Madhvani Foundation | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| UC Berkley Foundation | Berkeley, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| New York Youth Symphony | New York, NY | $4,750 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Federation of Jewish Communities of the Cis | New York, NY | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Lower Merion Conservancy | Gladwyne, PA | $4,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Maternity Care Coalition | Philadelphia, PA | $4,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| People's Emergency Center | Philadelphia, PA | $4,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Junior League of Philadelphia Inc | Ardmore, PA | $4,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| The Rock School for Dance Education | Philadelphia, PA | $4,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Women's Center of Montgomery County | Elkins Park, PA | $4,000 | 4 | 2 | 2024 |
| Womens Center of Montgomery County | Elkins Park, PA | $4,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Barrack Hebrew Academy | Bryn Mawr, NY | $3,600 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Bridlewild | Gladwyne, PA | $3,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show | Philadelphia, PA | $3,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| The Rock School | Philadelphia, PA | $3,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Sharefood Donation Reimbursement | Philadelphia, PA | $2,613 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Jewish Learning Venture | Philadelphia, PA | $2,518 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Cancer Support Community of Greater Philadelphia | Warminster, PA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Cancer Support Community of Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Drexel Chabad | Philadelphia, PA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Friends of Idf | New York, NY | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Hias Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Huru International | New York, NY | $2,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Jewish Community Federation and Endowment Fund | Philadelphia, PA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Jewish Family & Children's Service of Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Mother's Home | Darby, PA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| National Museum of American Jewish History | Philadelphia, PA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Public Citizens for Children and Youth | Philadelphia, PA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Jewish Day School of Metropolitan Seattle | Bellevue, WA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Eldernet | Bryn Mawr, PA | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Eldernet of Lower Merionnarberth | Bryn Mawr, PA | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Riverbend Environmental Education Center | Gladwyne, PA | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Wagner Free Institute of Science | Philadelphia, PA | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation | New York, NY | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Brooklyn Library | Brooklyn, NY | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Brooklyn Public Library | Brooklyn, NY | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Ny Youth Symphony | New York, NY | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Twcpma | Philadelphia, PA | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Fairmount Park Conservancy | Philadelphia, PA | $1,425 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Friends of the Wissahickon | Philadelphia, PA | $1,250 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Bethel AME Church | Landsowne, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Bridlewild Trails Association | Gladwyne, PA | $1,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Center for Companies That Care | Chicago, IL | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Colorectal Cancer Society | Washington, DC | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Gratz College | Melrose Park, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Greater Philadelphia Hillel | Philadelphia, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Lansdale Library Association | Lansdale, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Living Beyond Breast Cancer | Bala Cynwyd, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Mending a Life Program | Maple Grove, MN | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| National Ms Society | New York, NY | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Rendell Center | Berwyn, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Rep Squash | El Sobrante, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Riverbend | Gladwyne, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Save a Child's Heart US | Potomac, MD | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Stanford Spilf | Stanford, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Stanford University | Stanford, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Steve's Camp at Horizon Farms | Fort Collins, CO | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Film Noir Foundation | Alameda, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco | San Francisco, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Klehr Center for Jewish Life | Lancaster, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Shipley School | Bryn Mawr, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Theatre Ariel | Merion Station, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Women's Resource Center | Wayne, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Philadelphia University | Philadelphia, PA | $600 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Torah Fund | New York, NY | $600 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village | New York, NY | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Citizens for Pennsylvanias Future | Harrisburg, PA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance | New York, NY | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Wagner Free Institute of Science in Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Israel Tennis & Education Centers | New York City, NY | $360 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| National Alliance to End Homelessness | Washington, DC | $250 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| The Salvation Army | Norristown, PA | $250 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
72 of 171 (42%) 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 53%, 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 Share Food Program
SECOND INSTALLMENT OF $10MM COMMITMENT - Share Food Program Inc
TO FUND THE RECIPIENT'S OPERATING BUDGET - Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia
MOISHE HOUSE PHILADELPHIA - Brandeis University (our Generation Speaks)
GIFT TO OUR GENERATION SPEAKS - National Council of Young Israel
SENDING SUPPLIES TO ISRAELI SOLDERS (SILVI AND ORAN) - Drexel University Fund
DREXEL SQUASH JOHN D WHITE
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 159 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 | 78 | $2,331,313 | $3,300 |
| 2022 | 88 | $5,680,175 | $2,839 |
| 2023 | 90 | $4,630,929 | $2,500 |
| 2024 | 62 | $5,493,616 | $5,000 |
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.
Where its money goes
78% of its giving went to organizations in Pennsylvania.
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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 Specter 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: 718 Merion Square Road, Gladwyne, PA, 19035. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS.
EIN 38-7076393 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
Is something here wrong about your foundation? Email [email protected] and we will correct it.