Henry E. Niles Foundation

Private foundation · EIN 06-1252486 · since 1990henryniles.org·Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, …·Updated 13 October 2026

At a glance

$1.8M

Annual giving, 2025 tax year

From the Form 990-PF filing

$2,500 to $50,000

Grant range

From the funder's website

Open to applications

Rolling, no deadlines · unsolicited applications welcome

Key takeaways

Work in education, economic self-sufficiency, or public health and sanitation fits the Foundation's stated interests, and it gives added emphasis where these intersect; it also favours long-term solutions and pilot initiatives.
Its grants have ranged from $2,500 to $50,000, so a request within that span is a reasonable starting point, and the Foundation gives priority to the Northeastern United States.
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis through its online form, and an organisation may submit only one application each year.
The Foundation says it prioritises requests with specific plans for financial sustainability, partnerships with other groups, an active policy-making board, and a way to assess results, so the application should show these clearly.
Organisations that are not tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3), individuals, government agencies, and organisations that rely mainly on third-party funding without much effort to attract private funding should not apply, and general fundraising drives and endowments are excluded.

Overview

Henry E. Niles Foundation is a US private foundation based in Southbury, CT.

What they fund

Profile derived from the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings (TY2025, TY2024, TY2023) and its website, with every statement checked against those sources. Sources read on 7 October 2026.

Priority Areas

The Foundation supports humanitarian efforts, including faith-based initiatives, to nurture and uplift people in need. Its programme interests are education, including primary, secondary and higher education for people unable to obtain quality education without assistance; economic self-sufficiency through job training, entrepreneurialism, mentoring and micro-credit; and health and independence, including medical and public-health assistance for the elderly, poor, disadvantaged and disabled. It also highlights special education and literacy, and public health and sanitation globally. It favours long-term solutions, pilot initiatives and collaborative work, particularly where programme interests intersect. It seeks dynamic personnel and passionate leadership, prudent management and governance, and commitment to results and assessing programme impact. Applicants must be tax-exempt 501(c)(3) non-profit organisations; international projects are funded only through US tax-exempt organisations.

Themes

Education
Economic self-sufficiency
Public health and sanitation

Geographic Focus

Priority: Northeastern United States.

What They Don't Fund

Organizations not determined to be tax-exempt under section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code
Individuals
General fundraising drives
Endowments
Government agencies
Organizations that subsist mainly on third party funding and have demonstrated no ability or expended little effort to attract private funding

How to apply

Organisations submit through the Foundation's online application form; one application is permitted per organisation each year.

Application success factors

What the foundation says:

The Foundation favours programmes addressing long-term solutions to the causes of problems, rather than simply treating symptoms.
It gives added emphasis to programmes and organisations addressing the intersection of its programme interests.
It encourages pilot initiatives that test new programme models.
It particularly favours organisations promoting partnerships and collaborative efforts among multiple groups.
It prioritises requests showing specific plans for financial sustainability.
Applicants need an active policy-making board competent in the organisation's sound financial management.
It values effective and dynamic personnel, passionate leadership, prudent management and governance, and commitment to results and impact assessment.

Officers and directors

James R Lamb — Treasurer/ D
Leland C Selby — VP / Secretary / Director
Geoffrey M Parkinson — President/ D

From the latest Form 990-PF filing

3 years of tax filings

Year	Total expenses	Grants paid	Assets	Filing document
2023 tax year	$2,174,154	$1,763,000	$33,664,465	Filing for 2023 tax year
2024 tax year	$2,176,795	$1,732,500	$36,785,018	Filing for 2024 tax year
2025 tax year	$2,270,951	$1,798,000	$39,642,186	Filing for 2025 tax year

Figures from the foundation’s IRS Form 990-PF filings. Assets are at fair market value at year end. The document icon links to each year’s filing on ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.