Leon Levy Foundation

Quick Stats

Annual Giving: $35.3 million (FY 2023)
Total Assets: $495.9 million
Grant Range: $25,000 - $9,000,000+
Average Grant: ~$50,000
Geographic Focus: Primarily New York City, with select national and international grants
Application Method: Invitation only

Contact Details

Address:
One Rockefeller Plaza, 19th Floor
New York, NY 10020

Phone: 212-455-6270

Note: The foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals or letters of inquiry. Grants are made by invitation only.

Overview

Established in 2004 from the estate of Leon Levy (1925-2003), a pioneering investor and co-founder of Oppenheimer & Co., the Leon Levy Foundation continues the philanthropic legacy of Leon Levy and his wife Shelby White, who serves as Founding Trustee. With assets of approximately $496 million, the foundation awarded $35.3 million in grants in fiscal year 2023. The foundation advances humanist values of "understanding, appreciation, and preservation" through strategic grantmaking across six program areas that reflect the deep and diverse interests of its founders. Operating with a lean staff model by design, the foundation relies on trusted, long-term partnerships with grantee organizations and depends on their expertise to guide its work. The foundation has awarded over $500 million in total grants since inception.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

The foundation operates across six distinct program areas with both operating and project support:

Ancient World ($200+ million invested)

Major institutional support: $200 million to NYU for Institute for the Study of the Ancient World
Archaeological publications program: Up to $30,000 annually for up to 3 years through the Shelby White and Leon Levy Program for Archaeological Publications at Harvard
Conservation and training programs at international archaeological sites
Endowed professorships in classical studies and ancient civilizations

Neuroscience ($56 million across 128 grants)

Leon Levy Scholarships in Neuroscience: 36 months of support for postdoctoral researchers at 125% of NIH postdoctoral rates, administered by New York Academy of Sciences
Institutional support for five major NYC medical research centers: Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NYU Langone Health, Rockefeller University, and Weill Cornell Medicine
Specialized research support including Johns Hopkins Medicine's neuro-visual and vestibular disorders division

Archives Initiative ($38.5 million to 67 organizations through 130 grants)

Assessment and planning grants
Archivist positions
Digital asset management systems
Collections development and research
Programming, education, and exhibitions
Exclusively focused on NYC-area cultural institutions

Arts & Humanities

Major institutional archives: $2.4 million to New York Philharmonic for digitization
Library infrastructure: $2.25 million to Brooklyn Public Library for Leon Levy Information Commons
Graduate Center of CUNY: $10 million for Leon Levy Center for Biography

Nature & Gardens

New York Botanical Garden: $15 million for Native Plant Garden
Prospect Park restoration: $10 million
Brooklyn Botanical Garden: $7.5 million for water conservation
Cornell Lab of Ornithology and American Bird Conservancy for bird mortality prevention

Jewish Culture

Ongoing support for The Jewish Museum and Center for Jewish History
Support for Yeshiva University Museum and Lower East Side Tenement Museum
International institutions: Israel Museum, Harvard Semitic Museum, Israel Antiquities Authority

Human Rights & Civil Liberties

Committee to Protect Journalists, ACLU, Freedom House
Human Rights First, Center for Reproductive Rights, Physicians for Human Rights
Immigrant Justice Corps

Priority Areas

The foundation focuses on:

Institutional capacity building and infrastructure
Long-term research initiatives and fellowships
Archaeological research and heritage preservation
Brain research and neuroscience advancement
Archival preservation and public access to historical materials
Cultural enrichment in New York City
Environmental conservation, particularly gardens and bird populations
Civil liberties and human rights protection
Jewish cultural heritage

What They Don't Fund

The foundation's invitation-only model means they focus exclusively on organizations and projects identified through their strategic relationships. They do not accept unsolicited proposals for any program area.

Governance and Leadership

Board of Trustees:

Shelby White - Founding Trustee
Tracy White - Trustee
Elizabeth Moynihan - Trustee
John Bernstein - Trustee

All trustees serve without compensation.

Leadership Staff:

Meredith Ross - President ($371,000 compensation)
Justine Koch - Director of Finance ($212,000)
Jennifer Ellis - Program Officer ($180,200)

The foundation maintains a deliberately lean staff structure to maximize resources allocated directly to grants rather than overhead.

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

The Leon Levy Foundation does not have a public application process. The foundation explicitly states: "The Leon Levy Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals or letters of inquiry. Grant requests and inquiries are by invitation only."

The foundation operates through a strategic, relationship-based model where:

The majority of grantees are long-term partners with established relationships
The foundation identifies organizations and projects aligned with its six program areas
Invitations to apply are extended based on the foundation's strategic priorities
Expert partners guide the foundation's work in specialized areas

Exception - Archaeological Publications Program: The Shelby White and Leon Levy Program for Archaeological Publications at Harvard University has a formal application process for archaeologists holding doctorate degrees. Applications should be emailed to whitelev@fas.harvard.edu with supporting documentation.

Getting on Their Radar

Based on the foundation's documented approach, organizations may increase visibility through:

Long-term partnerships: The foundation explicitly states that "the majority of our grantees are partners of long standing." They value sustained relationships over one-time grants.

Sector leadership: Major grants have gone to leading institutions in their fields—NYU for ancient world studies, top NYC medical schools for neuroscience, premier cultural institutions for archives.

NYC cultural sector engagement: For the Archives Initiative specifically, the foundation created the Leon Levy Foundation Archives Community (established 2020) with regular peer meetings, annual roundtables, and networking opportunities. Being active in NYC's cultural sector and connected to existing grantees may provide visibility.

Specialized expertise areas: The foundation depends on grantee partners' expertise to guide its work. Organizations with deep expertise in the foundation's six program areas and existing relationships with current grantees may have better positioning.

Science Philanthropy Alliance: The foundation has been a member since 2016, suggesting they engage with this network for neuroscience grantmaking.

Decision Timeline

Not publicly documented. Given the invitation-only model and relationship-based approach, timelines likely vary significantly by program area and project type.

Success Rates

Not applicable for public reporting, as the foundation does not accept unsolicited applications.

Reapplication Policy

Not applicable, as applications are by invitation only.

Application Success Factors

Since the foundation operates through invitation-only grantmaking, traditional application success factors do not apply. However, analysis of their grantmaking patterns reveals:

Scale and Impact: The foundation makes significant institutional investments. Recent examples include $200 million to NYU for ISAW, $15 million to New York Botanical Garden, and $10 million to CUNY Graduate Center. They think in terms of transformational gifts, not small grants.

Long-term Commitment: The foundation values sustained partnerships. The Archives Initiative has made 130 grants to just 67 organizations, indicating multiple grants to the same institutions. Their neuroscience program supports the same five NYC medical centers consistently.

Institutional Excellence: Grantees represent sector leaders—the Rockefeller University, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York Philharmonic, Columbia University. The foundation partners with institutions of exceptional reputation.

New York City Focus: While they make select national and international grants, NYC-based organizations receive the majority of funding, particularly in archives, arts & humanities, and nature & gardens programs.

Infrastructure and Capacity Building: Grants often support foundational needs—archival systems, endowed positions, capital projects, digital infrastructure—rather than general programming.

Alignment with Founders' Interests: The six program areas directly reflect Leon Levy and Shelby White's personal passions. Projects that connect to their documented interests (ancient archaeology, neuroscience, Jewish culture, gardens, civil liberties, archives) receive consideration.

Expert Guidance: The foundation's lean staff model means they rely heavily on expert advisors and existing grantees to identify worthy projects. Being recommended by current partners likely influences invitation decisions.

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

This is not a traditional grant opportunity. You cannot submit an unsolicited application. The foundation identifies and invites potential grantees based on strategic priorities and existing relationships.
Build long-term relationships, not one-time asks. The foundation explicitly values "partners of long standing" and makes multiple grants to the same organizations over time.
Think institutional and transformational, not programmatic. Average grants are around $50,000, but major investments range into millions. The foundation funds infrastructure, endowments, and capacity building.
NYC cultural institutions have the strongest positioning, particularly for archives, arts & humanities, and nature & gardens programs. Other geographies are supported primarily in ancient world studies, neuroscience at elite research institutions, and select human rights work.
Sector leadership matters. Grantees are consistently premier institutions in their fields. The foundation partners with organizations of exceptional reputation and expertise.
For neuroscience researchers: The Leon Levy Scholarships in Neuroscience represent the one competitive program with defined eligibility. Postdocs at NYC institutions with no more than three years of experience can apply through the New York Academy of Sciences (leonlevy@nyas.org).
For archaeologists: The Shelby White and Leon Levy Program for Archaeological Publications at Harvard accepts applications from doctorate-holding archaeologists (whitelev@fas.harvard.edu).

References

All sources accessed December 17, 2025.