Quick Stats
- Annual Giving: $873,290 (2023)
- Total Assets: $22.8 million (2024)
- Grant Range: $53,000 - $260,000
- Number of Grants: 5 grants awarded (2023)
- Median Grant: $200,000
- Geographic Focus: National (US)
- Application Method: Invitation only - no public application process
Contact Details
Address: 1455 Pennsylvania Ave NW Ste 400, Washington, DC 20004-1017
Note: The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations.
Overview
The US Justice Charitable Foundation Inc is a Washington DC-based private independent foundation established as a 501(c)(3) organization. With total assets of $22.8 million as of 2024, the foundation awarded $873,290 in grants during 2023 across five recipients. The foundation's mission centers on supporting educational initiatives that promote free enterprise, free market economics, limited government principles, and economic freedom. Their grantmaking focuses exclusively on educational institutions, particularly university programs and centers dedicated to teaching and advancing free market economic principles. The foundation operates on an invitation-only basis, selecting recipients at the discretion of its trustees rather than through a public application process.
Funding Priorities
Grant Programs
The foundation does not operate formal grant programs with published guidelines. Instead, grants are awarded at trustee discretion to preselected educational institutions.
Recent Grant Range: $53,000 - $260,000 (2023 data) Median Grant Size: $200,000
Priority Areas
The foundation exclusively funds educational initiatives in the following areas:
- Free enterprise and free market economics education - University programs, centers, and curricula focused on teaching free market economic principles
- Economic freedom and limited government programs - Educational initiatives that promote understanding of limited government and economic liberty
- Academic centers for public choice and market process - Support for specialized research and teaching centers
- Economics, law, and small business education - Programs that integrate these disciplines from a free market perspective
- Scholarship programs - Student scholarships focused on free enterprise and free market programs
- Visiting scholars programs - Support for economics and political science speaker series and visiting faculty
- Archive preservation - Digitization of historical economics archives (e.g., Ludwig von Mises materials)
Geographic Focus
National (United States) - grants awarded to institutions across multiple states.
What They Don't Fund
- Organizations outside the educational sector
- Programs not aligned with free market economics or limited government principles
- Unsolicited applications from organizations not previously identified by trustees
- General operating support unrelated to their core educational mission
- International organizations
- Individual researchers (outside of institutional programs)
Governance and Leadership
Officers and Trustees
- John Popeo - President and Treasurer
- Helen Popeo - Vice President and Secretary
- Asad P. Shah - Vice President
The foundation operates with a small board structure, with leadership concentrated among three officers who direct the foundation's grantmaking strategy and recipient selection.
Application Process & Timeline
How to Apply
This funder does not have a public application process.
The US Justice Charitable Foundation explicitly states that it "only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds." Grants are awarded at the discretion of the foundation's trustees, who identify and select recipient organizations based on alignment with the foundation's mission and priorities.
Organizations cannot apply for funding through any public application portal, proposal submission, or letter of inquiry process.
How Grants Are Awarded
The foundation's trustees identify educational institutions and programs that align with their focus on free enterprise, free market economics, and limited government education. Recipients are selected based on trustee knowledge of programs and institutions working in these areas. Grant decisions are made entirely at trustee discretion without a competitive application process.
Recent Grant Recipients
The following institutions received grants from the foundation in 2022 (most recent publicly available data):
- Chapman University ($260,000) - Support of programs in the areas of economics, law, free enterprise, and small business
- Ashbrook Center at Ashland University ($200,000) - Scholarships for students focused on free enterprise and free market programs
- College of the Ozarks ($200,000) - Educational initiatives that promote limited government, free enterprise and economic freedom, including support for Visiting Scholars in Economics, Political Science Speakers Fund, and Digitizing Ludwig von Mises Archive
- College of Charleston ($160,000) - Support of programs including educational initiatives at the center for public choice and market process
Key Takeaways for Grant Writers
- No public application process exists - This foundation cannot be approached through traditional grant application methods; they exclusively fund preselected organizations
- Highly focused mission - The foundation has a very specific ideological focus on free market economics, free enterprise, and limited government education
- Educational institutions only - All documented grants go to colleges and universities, specifically to programs, centers, and initiatives within those institutions
- Substantial grant sizes - With a median grant of $200,000 and a small number of annual grants (5 in 2023), the foundation makes significant awards to selected recipients
- Long-term institutional relationships appear key - Recipients include well-established academic centers and programs with demonstrated track records in free market economics education
- Not accessible for most organizations - Unless your organization is an educational institution with established programs in free market economics or limited government studies, and has existing connections to the foundation's trustees, this funder is not a viable prospect
References
- Cause IQ Profile - US Justice Charitable Foundation. https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/us-justice-charitable-foundation,262588270/ (Accessed January 7, 2026)
- GrantExec Profile - US Justice Charitable Foundation Inc. https://grantexec.com/foundations/262588270 (Accessed January 7, 2026)
- ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer - US Justice Charitable Foundatin Inc (EIN 26-2588270). https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/262588270 (Accessed January 7, 2026)
- Candid Foundation Directory - US Justice Charitable Foundation Inc. https://fconline.foundationcenter.org/fdo-grantmaker-profile?key=USJU002 (Accessed January 7, 2026)
- GuideStar Profile - US Justice Charitable Foundation Inc (EIN 26-2588270). https://www.guidestar.org/profile/26-2588270 (Accessed January 7, 2026)