The Coby Foundation
At a glance
Key takeaways
- If your organisation is a 501(c)(3) museum or cultural body based in New England or the Mid-Atlantic, and your project concerns textiles or fashion, the foundation's stated aims fit well.
- About 8 in 10 of its 64 grants fall between $14,000 and $50,000, with a median of $25,000 and half at $25,000 or less, so a request near the middle of that band is sensible, though its largest grant was $100,000.
- Start with a letter of inquiry, which the foundation reviews on a rolling basis, and submit a detailed proposal only if invited, by the deadline it then gives.
- Around a third of its grant dollars in the filing went to organisations it had funded before, so repeat support is common but not the only route.
- Do not request staff salaries or overhead, which it does not fund.
Overview
The Coby Foundation is a US private foundation based in New York, NY.
What they fund
Profile derived from the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings (TY2024, TY2023, TY2022) and its website, with every statement checked against those sources. Sources read on 7 October 2026.
Priority Areas
The Coby Foundation supports projects that advance scholarship, expand public access to museum collections and foster public engagement with textiles and textile history. It seeks work bringing new scholarship, diverse perspectives and meaningful public engagement to textiles and fashion. It funds exhibitions, public programmes and publications that shed new light on textiles and fashion across cultures, regions and eras, alongside conservation, digitisation and cataloguing to preserve and expand access to textile collections. It also supports projects that bring communities together around textile making. Its grants support museums and other 501(c)(3) cultural organisations based in New England or the Mid-Atlantic. It looks for innovative scholarship, underrepresented artists and cultures, and textile collections that have been inadequately studied, preserved and shared.
Themes
- Textiles and fashion
- Exhibitions
- Public programs
- Publications
- Conservation
- Digitization and cataloging
- Community textile projects
Geographic Focus
New England; Mid-Atlantic.
What They Don't Fund
- Staff salaries
- Overhead
How to apply
Organisations meeting the Foundation’s requirements are invited to submit a letter of inquiry (LOI), reviewed on a rolling basis. Those invited to the next stage submit a detailed proposal by the deadline the Foundation notifies them of.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2024 filing, 34% of its grant dollars to organisations went to organisations it had also funded in its TY2022 or TY2023 filing.
- Grant size: Across its TY2022, TY2023 and TY2024 filings, half of its 64 grants to organisations were $25,000 or less.
What the foundation says:
- It looks for projects with innovative scholarship, underrepresented artists and cultures, or textile collections that have been inadequately studied, preserved and shared.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2024.
Grant dollars by state
4 other states: 10%
- The largest single recipient received 5% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2024, 34% of grant dollars went to organisations The Coby Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
- No grants were paid directly to organisations outside the US.
Grants
How much do they typically give?
Share of 23 grants in tax year 2024 by size
Median $30,000 (tax year 2024)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- Greater Hudson Heritage Network · Conservation treatment$80,0002024 tax year
- Maine State Museum · Exhibition$60,0002024 tax year
- The Frick Collection · Exhibition$50,0002024 tax year
- Museum of Art Rhode Island School of Design · Exhibition$50,0002024 tax year
- New-York Historical Society · Exhibition$50,0002024 tax year
- Schweinfurth Art Center · Exhibition$50,0002024 tax year
- Penn Museum · Exhibition$50,0002024 tax year
- Clark Art Institute · Exhibition$40,0002024 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Margaret K Hofer — Executive Director
- Lea Paine Highet — Treasurer
- Scott I Fulmer — Vice Chair
- Ward L E Mintz — Executive Director
- Brooke Pickering-Cole — Director
- Dr Carol Groneman — Director
- Martha C Howell — Director
- Dr Leslie Shanken — Chair
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
3 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 tax year | $769,945 | $500,000 | $15,356,119 | Filing for 2022 tax year |
| 2023 tax year | $1,066,251 | $753,500 | $19,825,165 | Filing for 2023 tax year |
| 2024 tax year | $1,165,114 | $789,000 | $22,992,527 | Filing for 2024 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.
Sources
Registers and filings
Other sources
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At a glance
Applying to The Coby Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- grants@cobyfoundation.org
- New York, NY
- cobyfoundation.org
Applying to The Coby Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- grants@cobyfoundation.org
- New York, NY
- cobyfoundation.org