Morgan Stanley Foundation (New York, NY, EIN 26-1226280)
At a glance
Key takeaways
- Its focus on children's health and wellbeing, and its support for U.S.-based 501(c)(3) public charities, makes it worth a look if your work addresses children's mental health, physical health, food insecurity or play.
- Most of its grants are initiated by Morgan Stanley itself, and unsolicited proposals are not accepted, so the realistic route is the annual call for the Children's Mental Health Innovation Awards, to which registered charities are invited to apply.
- Most of its grants are small, with about 8 in 10 falling between $1,000 and $20,000 and a median of $2,000, so a modest request fits its usual pattern, though its largest grant was $2,000,000.
- Repeat giving is strong, as 70% of its grant dollars to organisations went to groups it had also funded earlier, so it looks relationship-led and a cold first approach is unlikely to be easy.
- Organisations with annual total revenue over $5 million are excluded from the Children's Mental Health Innovation Awards, and the Next Gen Innovation Awards exclude organisations without a founder or leader under 32 or that have not been in operation for more than two years.
Overview
Morgan Stanley Foundation (New York, NY, EIN 26-1226280) 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 Morgan Stanley Foundation is dedicated to giving children a healthy start to life, supporting diverse communities and harnessing employees’ time and skills. It funds innovative programmes for children’s health and wellbeing, focusing on mental health, physical health, food insecurity and play. It supports U.S.-based 501(c)(3) public charities. Its stated focus also includes encouraging and rewarding employee volunteering, and creating college and career pathways for students who are first generation and/or from low-income backgrounds. Most grants are initiated by Morgan Stanley rather than through unsolicited proposals, while registered charities are solicited annually to apply to the Children’s Mental Health Innovation Awards in the U.S.
Themes
- Children’s mental health
- Children’s physical health
- Food insecurity
- Play
- Employee volunteering
- College and career pathways
Geographic Focus
U.S.
What They Don't Fund
- Political causes, candidates, campaigns, or lobbying programs
- Individuals
- Capital and endowment campaigns outside of our core hospital relationships
- Fraternal or professional sports organizations
- Special events including dinners, walks, runs and golf events
- Documentaries, individual performing arts groups or productions
- Children’s Mental Health Innovation Awards only: Nonprofits with an annual total revenue over $5 million; any institutional overhead costs which are not directly related to the proposed project
- Next Gen Innovation Awards only: organisations without a founder or leader under 32 years old, or that have not been in operation for more than two years
How to apply
Most grants are initiated by Morgan Stanley, and unsolicited proposals are not accepted. Registered charities are solicited annually to apply to the U.S. Children’s Mental Health Innovation Awards; no separate application route is described for other grants.
Deadlines: Applications are solicited annually.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2024 filing, 70% 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 1,551 grants to organisations were $2,000 or less.
What the foundation says:
- For the Innovation Awards, proposals should present inventive solutions to unmet needs, especially among disadvantaged and vulnerable populations.
- For the Innovation Awards, applications should outline executable services informed or delivered by mental health professionals and highlight relevant expertise or evidence-based models.
- For the Innovation Awards, applications should offer measurable deliverables, a clear evaluation model and measurable outcomes.
- For the Innovation Awards, proposals should be feasible to replicate or scale for children in broader communities.
- The programme seeks new or piloted projects from direct-service organisations addressing children’s and young adults’ mental health needs.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2024.
Grant dollars by state
6 other states: 8%
Outside the US or with no state on the filing: 4%
- The largest single recipient received 19% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2024, 70% of grant dollars went to organisations Morgan Stanley Foundation (New York, NY, EIN 26-1226280) had funded in earlier filings.
- No grants were paid directly to organisations outside the US.
- 4% of grant dollars went to intermediaries that regrant to other organisations.
Grants
How much do they typically give?
Share of 525 grants in tax year 2024 by size
Median $1,500 (tax year 2024)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- Feeding America · Expanding equitable access/operational response plans - child and family focus$1,880,0002024 tax year
- Sesame Workshop · Early intervening in young children's mental health$747,7942024 tax year
- Bridgespan Group · Strategy challenge 2024 support$372,0002024 tax year
- KaBOOM! · Morgan stanley and kaboom!: partnering to address playspace inequity$315,0002024 tax year
- American Academy of Pediatrics · Pediatric mental health education center$261,8102024 tax year
- Boston Children's Hospital · Corey griffin house$250,0002024 tax year
- UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals Foundation · Tackling the mental health crisis$250,0002024 tax year
- Columbia University · Expanding community-based mental health care to adolescents and young adults$250,0002024 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Zaretsky Andrea — Director (Began March 2024)
- Yeshaya Sharon — Director
- Wong Fountain Valerie — Director
- Tennant Anne — Director
- Steinberg Joan — Director, President
- Stark David — Director
- Slovik Matthew — Director, Finance Chair
- Segal Tatiana — Director
- Reid Susan — Director
- Poser Michael — Director (Began June 2024)
- Musa Ileana — Director
- Mcdade Wesley — Director
- Harris Carla A — Director
- Dotson William J — Director
- Chow-Coster Cynthia — Director
- Chasin Charles — Director, Chair
- Abruzzo Craig — Director
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
3 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 tax year | $4,395,933 | $10,787,641 | $97,449,294 | Filing for 2022 tax year |
| 2023 tax year | $18,850,355 | $12,317,083 | $96,112,177 | Filing for 2023 tax year |
| 2024 tax year | $25,386,456 | $7,980,792 | $105,643,271 | 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
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At a glance
Applying to Morgan Stanley Foundation (New York, NY, EIN 26-1226280)?
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Applying to Morgan Stanley Foundation (New York, NY, EIN 26-1226280)?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required