Funding search · EIN 366079185 · Chicago, IL

The Joyce Foundation

Name: The Joyce Foundation grants, 2022–2024
Creator: PaperOrbit
License: https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/exempt-organization-public-disclosure-and-availability-requirements

A private foundation (files IRS Form 990-PF). Most private foundations do not take unsolicited applications; the route in is usually a program officer.

1,416
grants reported: $162.7M
total given: 2022–2024
filing years: $90,000
median grant

Based on grants this organization reported to the IRS for tax years 2022–2024. This is what they filed, not a complete record of their giving, and recent years may be incomplete because filings lag.

What they fund

economic education mobility justice prevention reform violence environment

Funder website ↗Full IRS filings ↗How this is built Report 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

Education and economic mobility policy, K-12 through college completion
Midwest clean energy, utility regulation, and environmental justice advocacy
Gun violence prevention research, policy, and justice reform
Local and nonprofit journalism, especially Chicago and Great Lakes newsrooms
Voting access, election administration, and pro-democracy infrastructure
Mission Fund grants to civic, economic, and cultural intermediaries

Typical grant

The median grant is $90,000 and the middle half falls between $40,000 and $150,000, so a first ask in the $75,000 to $200,000 range reads as normal. The largest checks, $300,000 to $1 million, go to established intermediaries and news organizations they have long relationships with, such as Chicago Public Media, Education First, and IFF. With 1,416 grants to 695 recipients across three years, most grantees are funded more than once, so treat a first grant as the opening of a multi-year relationship rather than a one-off.

Their words

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

“EDUCATION & ECONOMIC MOBILITY”
“GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION & JUSTICE REFORM”
“ENVIRONMENT”
“JOURNALISM”
“DEMOCRACY”
“MISSION FUND”

Positioning adjacent work

Map your work onto one named program area, not two; their grant lines carry a single category label.
University researchers are funded through named centers, not departments; lead with the center's policy track record.
Ask $150,000 to $275,000 for a research center project, matching Johns Hopkins, Northwestern, and Cline Center awards.
Emphasize Midwest application, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, or Wisconsin, even if the method is national.

Worth knowing: Illinois takes 528 of 1,416 grants and DC another 205, so this is a Chicago-anchored funder with a Washington policy arm; out-of-region applicants generally win only when they are national policy shops or when the work lands in Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, or Wisconsin. The recipient list is heavy with repeat advocacy and intermediary organizations, which suggests relationship-driven giving where a warm introduction from a current grantee matters more than a cold proposal.

Top recipients

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

Education First Consulting Llc8 grants · $2.2M
Chicago Public Media - Chicago Sun-Times2 grants · $2.0M
Iff3 grants · $1.9M
The Aspen Institute6 grants · $1.8M
Advance Illinois6 grants · $1.6M
Elevate Energy9 grants · $1.6M
Crain'S Chicago Business3 grants · $1.5M
Civic News Company6 grants · $1.4M
Michigan League of Conservation Voters Education Fund6 grants · $1.4M
The Institute for College Access and Success4 grants · $1.3M

Giving over time

$55.3M

2022

$55.1M

2023

$52.2M

2024

Grant history

The 100 largest of 1,416 grants.

$1.0M
Chicago Public Media - Chicago Sun-Times · Chicago, IL · 2024
Mission fund
$1.0M
Chicago Public Media Inc - Chicago Sun-Times · Chicago, IL · 2023
Mission Fund
$1.0M
Chicago Public Media - Chicago Sun-Times · Chicago, IL · 2022
Mission Fund
$1.0M
Urban Institute · Washington, DC · 2022
Mission Fund
$935,000
Education First Consulting Llc · Seattle, WA · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$625,000
Iff · Chicago, IL · 2024
Mission fund
$625,000
Iff · Chicago, IL · 2023
Mission Fund
$625,000
Iff · Chicago, IL · 2022
Mission Fund
$600,000
Minnesota Department of Commerce - Energy & Utilities · St Paul, MN · 2024
Mission fund
$600,000
The Aspen Institute · Washington, DC · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$600,000
National Parks Conservation Association · Washington, DC · 2022
Environment
$576,000
National Parks Conservation Association · Washington, DC · 2024
Environment
$525,000
Civic News Company · New York, NY · 2024
Journalism
$500,000
Amalgamated Charitable Foundation Inc - Families and Workers Fund · Washington, DC · 2024
Mission fund
$500,000
Crain'S Chicago Business · Chicago, IL · 2024
Journalism
$500,000
Elevate Energy · Chicago, IL · 2024
Environment
$500,000
Advance Illinois · Chicago, IL · 2023
Education & Economic Mobility
$500,000
Amalgamated Charitable Foundation Inc - Families and Workers Fund · Washington, DC · 2023
Mission Fund
$500,000
Crain'S Chicago Business · Chicago, IL · 2023
Journalism
$500,000
Advance Illinois · Chicago, IL · 2022
Education & Economic Mobility
$500,000
Crain'S Chicago Business · Chicago, IL · 2022
Journalism
$500,000
Ed Allies · Minneapolis, MN · 2022
Education & Economic Mobility
$500,000
Environmental Defense Fund · Washington, DC · 2022
Environment
$500,000
Protect Democracy Project · Washington, DC · 2022
Democracy
$485,000
The Institute for College Access and Success · Oakland, CA · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$472,440
Project Unloaded · Chicago, IL · 2024
Gun violence prevention & justice reform
$450,000
Georgetown University · Washington, DC · 2023
Mission Fund
$450,000
New York University - the Policing Project · New York, NY · 2022
Gun Violence Prevention & Justice Reform
$425,000
Education First Consulting Llc · Seattle, WA · 2023
Education & Economic Mobility
$425,000
Chicago Public Media · Chicago, IL · 2022
Journalism
$400,000
Chicago Public Education Fund · Chicago, IL · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$400,000
National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships · Chapel Hill, NC · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$400,000
Chicago Public Education Fund · Chicago, IL · 2023
Education & Economic Mobility
$400,000
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services · Lansing, MI · 2023
Environment
$400,000
Minneapolis Foundation - Midwest Environmental Justice Network · Minneapolis, MN · 2023
Environment
$400,000
The Aspen Institute · Washington, DC · 2023
Education & Economic Mobility
$400,000
Advertising Council · New York, NY · 2022
Mission Fund
$400,000
National Wildlife Federation · Reston, VA · 2022
Environment
$400,000
Sierra Club Foundation · Oakland, CA · 2022
Environment
$400,000
The Brookings Institution · Washington, DC · 2022
Mission Fund
$385,000
Clean Wisconsin · Madison, WI · 2024
Environment
$383,000
Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance · Chicago, IL · 2024
Environment
$378,000
Fines and Fees Justice Center · New York, NY · 2024
Mission fund
$373,000
University of Illinois - Discovery Partners Institute · Chicago, IL · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$360,000
Ohio Environmental Council · Columbus, OH · 2023
Environment
$355,000
Advance Illinois · Chicago, IL · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$354,000
Trace Media · Brooklyn, NY · 2024
Journalism
$350,000
Common Cause Education Fund · Washington, DC · 2024
Democracy
$350,000
Faith in Place · Chicago, IL · 2024
Environment
$350,000
The Education Trust · Washington, DC · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$350,000
Common Cause Education Fund · Washington, DC · 2023
Democracy
$350,000
Faith in Place · Chicago, IL · 2023
Environment
$350,000
Great Plains Institute for Sustainable Development · Minneapolis, MN · 2023
Environment
$350,000
Knowledgeworks Foundation - College in High School Alliance · Cincinnati, OH · 2023
Education & Economic Mobility
$350,000
New Venture Fund - Project Unloaded · Washington, DC · 2023
Gun Violence Prevention & Justice Reform
$350,000
Rodel Charitable Foundation De · Wilmington, DE · 2023
Education & Economic Mobility
$350,000
The Institute for College Access and Success · Oakland, CA · 2023
Education & Economic Mobility
$350,000
Clean Wisconsin · Madison, WI · 2022
Environment
$350,000
Common Cause Education Fund · Washington, DC · 2022
Democracy
$350,000
Great Plains Institute for Sustainable Development · Minneapolis, MN · 2022
Environment
$350,000
New Venture Fund - Project Unloaded · Washington, DC · 2022
Gun Violence Prevention & Justice Reform
$350,000
The Institute for College Access and Success · Oakland, CA · 2022
Education & Economic Mobility
$350,000
William J Brennan Jr Center for Justice · New York, NY · 2022
Democracy
$345,000
New America Foundation · Washington, DC · 2022
Education & Economic Mobility
$344,478
Freshwater Society · St Paul, MN · 2023
Environment
$325,000
Natural Resources Defense Council · New York, NY · 2024
Environment
$325,000
University of Chicago - Consortium On Chicago School Research · Chicago, IL · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$325,000
The Milken Institute · Santa Monica, CA · 2023
Mission Fund
$325,000
Teach Plus Incorporated · Boston, MA · 2022
Education & Economic Mobility
$305,000
Public Agenda · Brooklyn, NY · 2023
Mission Fund
$300,000
Chicago Public Media · Chicago, IL · 2024
Journalism
$300,000
Ed Allies · Minneapolis, MN · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$300,000
Michigan League of Conservation Voters Education Fund · Ann Arbor, MI · 2024
Environment
$300,000
Wcij · Madison, WI · 2024
Journalism
$300,000
Chicago Public Media · Chicago, IL · 2023
Journalism
$300,000
Chisholm Legacy Project · Burtsonville, MD · 2023
Environment
$300,000
Michigan League of Conservation Voters Education Fund · Ann Arbor, MI · 2023
Environment
$300,000
Natural Resources Defense Council · New York, NY · 2023
Environment
$300,000
New Profit · Boston, MA · 2023
Mission Fund
$300,000
Protect Minnesota · Minneapolis, MN · 2023
Mission Fund
$300,000
The Pivot Fund · Atlanta, GA · 2023
Mission Fund
$300,000
Union of Concerned Scientists · Cambridge, MA · 2023
Environment
$300,000
Arizona State University Foundation · Tempe, AZ · 2022
Education & Economic Mobility
$300,000
Elevate Energy · Chicago, IL · 2022
Environment
$300,000
Minneapolis Foundation - Re-Amp · Minneapolis, MN · 2022
Environment
$300,000
Natural Resources Defense Council · New York, NY · 2022
Environment
$300,000
New Profit · Boston, MA · 2022
Mission Fund
$300,000
The Aspen Institute · Washington, DC · 2022
Education & Economic Mobility
$300,000
The Chicago Public Education Fund · Chicago, IL · 2022
Education & Economic Mobility
$300,000
University of Illinois - Discovery Partners Institute · Chicago, IL · 2022
Education & Economic Mobility
$290,000
Education First Consulting Llc · Seattle, WA · 2023
Education & Economic Mobility
$287,000
Policy Innovators in Education Network · Minneapolis, MN · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$285,000
State Higher Education Executive Officers Association · Boulder, CO · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$282,500
Latino Policy Forum · Chicago, IL · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$275,000
Great Plains Institute for Sustainable Development · Minneapolis, MN · 2024
Environment
$275,000
Johns Hopkins University - Center for Gun Violence Solutions · Baltimore, MD · 2024
Gun violence prevention & justice reform
$275,000
National Council On Teacher Quality · Washington, DC · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$275,000
Teach Plus Incorporated · Boston, MA · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$275,000
Unidosus · Washington, DC · 2024
Education & economic mobility
$275,000
Alliance for the Great Lakes · Chicago, IL · 2023
Environment

View all 1,416 grants →

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Source: IRS Form 990-PF, Part XV, as filed by the foundation. These are grants already paid — a record of what this funder backs, not an open call.