Funding search · EIN 396036407 · Milwaukee, WI

Greater Milwaukee Foundation

A grantmaking public charity (files IRS Form 990, Schedule I). Charities like this often run real grant programs with application cycles.

2,339
grants reported
$188.9M
total given
2022–2024
filing years
$25,000
median grant

Based on grants this organization reported to the IRS for tax years 20222024. This is what they filed, not a complete record of their giving, and recent years may be incomplete because filings lag.

What they fund

sustainingscholarshipmilwaukeehealthcommunitycapitalschoolscholarships

Funder website ↗Full IRS filings ↗How this is builtReport an error

Funding pattern

What this funder pays for, at what size, and how to position adjacent work. Read from their filings, with every number checked against the record.

Where the money goes

  • Milwaukee neighborhood development, housing and anti-displacement work
  • Unrestricted sustaining support for Milwaukee arts and cultural anchors
  • Health equity research and services, including Black men's cancer screening
  • Biomedical research through the Shaw Scientist Program at UWM and UW-Madison
  • Scholarships and K-12/college access at Milwaukee schools and colleges
  • Lake Michigan and Wisconsin watershed restoration, urban environmental education

Typical grant

The median grant is $25,000 and half of everything falls between roughly $10,300 and $55,000, so a five-figure ask is the normal conversation. The seven-figure checks go to named endowed programs and regional anchors (Community Development Alliance at $4.6M, Shaw Scientist at UWM for $1.77M, Medical College of Wisconsin at $1.5M), while the small ones are scholarships and donor-advised pass-throughs. Giving repeats heavily: 2,339 grants across only 1,352 recipients, and the recurring 'sustaining support' line items go to the same institutions year after year.

Their words

Phrases from their own grant descriptions, worth speaking back to them.

  • SUSTAINING SUPPORT
  • GENERAL OPERATING 2024
  • 2024 FUNDING ALLOCATION
  • UNRESTRICTED
  • CAPITAL 2024
  • MATCHING GRANT

Positioning adjacent work

  • Route biomedical work through the Shaw Scientist Program at UWM Foundation or UW-Madison rather than a direct ask.
  • Frame health research the way they do: screening and outcomes disparities for Black Milwaukeeans, plus 'evaluating the health equity impact'.
  • Water and watershed researchers should connect to Fund for Lake Michigan, Milwaukee Riverkeeper, or East River watershed grantees.
  • Ask $25,000 to $75,000 for a first project; reserve six figures for multi-year or capital partnerships.

Worth knowing: This is a community foundation, so a large share of the giving is donor-advised and relationship-driven; the out-of-state grants to Schwab Charitable and American Endowment Foundation are fund transfers, not program interest. Money stays tightly inside Milwaukee and its adjacent counties, with named funds (Bacon, Nohl, Shaw, Robert Hill) locking up much of the largest giving before any new request is considered.

0 grants matching “substance use and addiction

No grants to show here.

Top recipients

Repeat recipients are the strongest signal of whether a funder has an open door or quietly re-funds the same organizations.

  • City of South Milwaukee1 grant · $10.0M
  • Dr James Cameron Legacy Foundation3 grants · $5.6M
  • Community Development Alliance1 grant · $4.6M
  • Historic Haymarket Milwaukee3 grants · $4.1M
  • Uwm Foundation2 grants · $3.9M
  • Marquette University3 grants · $2.7M
  • The Medical College of Wisconsin3 grants · $2.7M
  • Wispact3 grants · $2.3M
  • Milwaukee Rescue Mission3 grants · $2.2M
  • Milwaukee Art Museum3 grants · $2.1M

Giving over time

$74.0M
2022
$48.2M
2023
$66.8M
2024

Grant history

The 100 largest of 2,339 grants.

  • $10.0M

    City of South Milwaukee · South Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Master planning

  • $5.0M

    Dr James Cameron Legacy Foundation · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    The purpose of establishing an endowed fund

  • $4.6M

    Community Development Alliance · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Unrestricted

  • $2.9M

    Uwm Foundation · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Alice c. Helland scholarship :: uwm foundation, inc.

  • $2.7M

    Historic Haymarket Milwaukee · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    The new building campaign

  • $2.0M

    Schwab Charitable Fund · Omaha, NE · 2024

    Martha e. Parker and peter h. Thermansen charitable fund.

  • $1.9M

    Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (M · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    The apprenticeship program

  • $1.8M

    Uwm Foundation · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Shaw scientist program

  • $1.8M

    South Milwaukee Industrial Museum · South Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $1.7M

    Seas Foundation Ltd · Sheboygan, WI · 2022

    Fund liquidation

  • $1.6M

    Northwest Side Community Development Corp · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Advancing a charitable and educational program for aa arts center

  • $1.5M

    The Medical College of Wisconsin · Wauwatosa, WI · 2024

    Impacting pc knowledge and screening in black men

  • $1.5M

    Fund for Lake Michigan · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Organizational support

  • $1.5M

    Marquette University · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    The law school diane blinka scholarship

  • $1.4M

    Ely Area Community Foundation · Ely, MN · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $1.3M

    United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $1.3M

    Dr Howard Fuller Collegiate Academy · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    The dr. Howard fuller collegiate academy

  • $1.3M

    Joy Engine · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $1.1M

    American Endowment Foundation · Hudson, OH · 2024

    Fbl louie and sue andrew charitable fund a24011

  • $1.1M

    Divine Savior Holy Angels High School · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    The building campaign

  • $1.1M

    Ozaukee Washington Land Trust · West Bend, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support; preservation and restoration of nature

  • $1.0M

    Waukesha County Community Foundation · Waukesha, WI · 2022

    The luty fund

  • $1.0M

    United Way of Greater Milwaukee and Waukesha County · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Unrestricted use

  • $987,045

    Wispact · Madison, WI · 2024

    2024 wispact foundation grants

  • $967,355

    Children'S Wisconsin · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Gift commitment

  • $965,914

    Uwm Foundation · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Mapping harbor habital: scholarship criteria; sustaining support

  • $960,000

    Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    The 2023 and 2024 funding plan

  • $914,619

    United Community Center · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    2024 funding allocation

  • $910,074

    United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    2022 donation, attn: dave nawrocki

  • $892,195

    Milwaukee Ballet Company · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Ballet beat 2023

  • $801,178

    Milwaukee Rescue Mission · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Sustaining support

  • $800,000

    University of Wisconsin Madison · Madison, WI · 2024

    Shaw scientist program

  • $799,516

    Ascension Wisconsin Foundation · Brookfield, WI · 2024

    Sustaining support for columbia st. Mary's hospital

  • $792,234

    Milwaukee Art Museum · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    The campaign for the future

  • $782,811

    Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Classical music programs

  • $772,214

    Marquette University · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Frank rogers bacon fund scholarship

  • $731,930

    Notre Dame School of Milwaukee · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    The together we grow campaign

  • $716,685

    Historic Haymarket Milwaukee · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Matching grant

  • $712,912

    Milwaukee Rescue Mission · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $701,302

    Milwaukee Art Museum · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    50% for sustaining support and 50% to the fine arts society

  • $693,800

    Neighborhood House of Milwaukee · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Hvac project

  • $672,141

    Ascension Wisconsin Foundation · Brookfield, WI · 2023

    50% st. Joseph, 30% elmbrook memorial, 20% columbia st. Mary's hospital

  • $667,290

    Wispact · Madison, WI · 2023

    2023 provisional grants

  • $661,382

    Milwaukee Rescue Mission · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Sustaining support

  • $654,000

    Historic Haymarket Milwaukee · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Milwaukee public museum project 2007

  • $642,582

    Milwaukee Art Museum · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    The campaign for the future

  • $638,302

    Ascension Wisconsin Foundation · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $637,559

    Wispact · Madison, WI · 2022

    Wispact foundation annual grants

  • $612,510

    The Medical College of Wisconsin · Wauwatosa, WI · 2023

    Alzheimer's research

  • $590,629

    The Medical College of Wisconsin · Wauwatosa, WI · 2022

    Scholarship/medical college of wisconsin

  • $581,042

    Milwaukee Repertory Theater · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Capital 2022

  • $575,537

    Sojourner Family Peace Center · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $574,101

    Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Classical music programs

  • $565,900

    Acts Community Development Corporation · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    The acquisition fund

  • $558,126

    Next Door Foundation · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Mentoring and/or coaching programs for parents of young children

  • $553,300

    Acts Community Development Corporation · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    2024 funding allocation

  • $552,036

    Urban Ecology Center · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Growing environmental education in washington park

  • $548,564

    United Performing Arts Fund · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $544,956

    Life Navigators · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Establishing an agency endowment

  • $540,000

    Sailing Education Association of Sheboygan · Sheboygan, WI · 2024

    Sustaining support

  • $523,247

    Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    2023 camps for kids camperships for camp whitcomb mason

  • $510,000

    Housing Resources · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    2024 funding allocation

  • $503,948

    Marquette University · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    The roller family scholarship endowment

  • $502,000

    Catholic Memorial High School · Waukesha, WI · 2022

    Stem scholarships

  • $500,000

    Sailing Education Association of Sheboygan · Sheboygan, WI · 2023

    January and february grants for sustaining support

  • $500,000

    Cuped Corporation · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Green updates in connection with the bronzeville estates project

  • $500,000

    Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Cincinnati, OH · 2022

    The austin and heather ramirez foundation

  • $498,549

    University of Wisconsin Foundation · Madison, WI · 2023

    Frank rogers bacon fund scholarship

  • $493,916

    Guest House of Milwaukee · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Community case manager

  • $482,000

    Lynden · Riverhills, WI · 2024

    Mary l. Nohl fellowship for individual artists, 2025-2027 cycles

  • $476,769

    Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Scholarship/boys & girls clubs of greater milwaukee

  • $472,730

    Urban Ecology Center · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Summer camp program; notre dame school environmental education project

  • $460,000

    Sailing Education Association of Sheboygan · Sheboygan, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $448,657

    Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Robert hill fund

  • $446,281

    Kinship Mke · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    The workforce training program operated at the caf in thriveon king

  • $440,153

    Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Evaluating the health equity impact

  • $432,548

    Hunger Task Force · Westmilwaukee, WI · 2024

    Mccarty education kitchen

  • $427,120

    University of Wisconsin Foundation · Madison, WI · 2024

    James d. And dorothy shaw scholarship

  • $425,000

    Fund for Lake Michigan · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    The fflm contribution to the daybreak fund

  • $423,173

    Boys & Girls Club of Dane County · Fichburg, WI · 2024

    Vel r. Phillips statue

  • $421,653

    Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $412,674

    Salvation Army Milwaukee County · Wauwatosa, WI · 2024

    Sustaining support

  • $410,000

    Cuped Corporation · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    The bronzeville estates project

  • $404,167

    Dr Howard Fuller Collegiate Academy · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Campaign

  • $399,599

    Children'S Hospital of Wisconsin Foundation · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    The john and brigid miller family fund

  • $398,850

    Reflo · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    A collaborative ej alliance for milwaukee youth internships

  • $389,378

    University of Wisconsin Foundation · Madison, WI · 2022

    Scholarship with criteria

  • $380,000

    Seton Catholic Schools · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $341,706

    Waukesha County Community Foundation · Waukesha, WI · 2023

    The greater menomonee falls foundation fund distribution

  • $339,945

    Milwaukee Public Museum · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $339,929

    Salvation Army Milwaukee County · Wauwatosa, WI · 2023

    For rehabilitation and support services

  • $337,171

    Salvation Army Milwaukee County · Wauwatosa, WI · 2022

    Sustaining support

  • $335,941

    Milwaukee Area Technical College Foundation · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Adult promise scholarship program to fulfill commitment

  • $330,249

    Milwaukee Repertory Theater · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    Capital campaign

  • $329,982

    Bradley Impact Fund · Milwaukee, WI · 2023

    The marcia and kent velde charitable fund (#163789)

  • $328,973

    Hunger Task Force · West Allis, WI · 2022

    The capital campaign

  • $328,285

    Mount Mary University · Milwaukee, WI · 2022

    The endowed madonna scholarship

  • $327,736

    Hunger Task Force · West Allis, WI · 2023

    Non-operational expenses

  • $325,000

    African American Leadership Alliance Mke · Milwaukee, WI · 2024

    Operating support and capacity building

  • $324,117

    Community Development Society · Vestavia Hills, AL · 2023

    Supporting the 2023 cds annual conference and student scholarships

View all 2,339 grants →

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Source: IRS Form 990, Schedule I, as filed by this organization. These are grants already paid. Grants paid directly to individuals are reported to the IRS only as totals, so they do not appear as named lines here.