McDonald Agape Foundation

Private foundation · EIN 38-2840692 · since 1989mcdonaldagape.org·Asia, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Europe, Georgia, Germany, Hong Kong S.A.R., Louisiana, New …·Updated 13 October 2026

At a glance

$7M

Annual giving, 2024 tax year

From the Form 990-PF filing

$23,000 to $260k

Grant range

From grants in the 990-PF filings

$91,620

Typical grant (median)

55 grants in the latest filing

Invitation only

Unsolicited applications are not accepted

This funder does not accept unsolicited applications. The foundation chooses the organisations it funds itself.

Key takeaways

The foundation's recorded purposes centre on theological education, and its organisational recipients include divinity schools, universities, theological colleges and religious or academic institutes, so a proposal should sit clearly within that field.
It states that it does not accept unsolicited requests, so do not send a cold application; approach it only through an existing relationship or an invitation, since 96% of its grant dollars to organisations went to organisations it had funded in earlier filings.
About 8 in 10 of its grants fall between $23,000 and $260,000, with a median of about $75,000, so a request near that typical band is a sensible size, though the largest grant was about $685,000, so the band is not the full range.
Organisations that would apply without an invitation should not do so, because the foundation says it does not accept unsolicited requests.

Overview

McDonald Agape Foundation is a US private foundation based in Birmingham, MI.

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 foundation’s public-facing site uses the motto Encouraging Distinguished Scholars for Christ®. Its grants chiefly support education in theology and related scholarly work. Recorded purposes include theology professorships and academic programmes, historical study of religion, and work at the intersections of theology with medicine, law and the arts. Its organisational recipients include divinity schools, universities, theological colleges and religious or academic institutes. Grants have supported chairs and fellowships as well as research, lectures, online programming and operational support for educational programmes. The record also includes religious ministry and outreach.

Themes

From its grants, not stated by the foundation:

Theological education

Geographic Focus

No geographic focus is stated; the filings show grants mainly in Georgia, District of Columbia, Connecticut, New York, Louisiana, the United States, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Germany, Europe and Asia.

How to apply

The foundation states that it does not accept unsolicited requests.

Application success factors

Repeat giving: In its TY2024 filing, 96% 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 161 grants to organisations were about $75,000 or less.

Where grants go

From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2024.

Grant dollars by state

Georgia12%

District of Columbia11%

Connecticut9%

New York9%

Louisiana8%

South Carolina8%

6 other states: 15%

Outside the US or with no state on the filing: 27%

The largest single recipient received 9% of grant dollars to organisations.
In tax year 2024, 96% of grant dollars went to organisations McDonald Agape Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
26% of grant dollars went directly to organisations outside the US (United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Germany).
11% of grant dollars went to intermediaries that regrant to other organisations.

Grants

55 grants in the latest filing analysed · median $91,620

How much do they typically give?

Share of 55 grants in tax year 2024 by size

$5k–$10k2%

$10k–$25k7%

$25k–$50k20%

$50k–$100k22%

$100k–$250k36%

$250k–$500k9%

$500k–$1M4%

Median $91,620 (tax year 2024)

The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:

Lambeth Trust · Education:theology - centre for cultural witness (lambeth palace)
$585,2822024 tax year
International Dominican Foundation · Education: theology - angelicum scriptual exegesis project
$583,0002024 tax year
Duke University Divinity School · Education: theology/arts - dita directorship support
$400,0002024 tax year
Columbia University Vagelos Medical College · Education: ethics/medicine - center for clinical medical ethics
$400,0002024 tax year
Emory University - Chandler Divinity School · Education: theology/law - new testament professorship
$300,0002024 tax year
Georgetown University · Education: theology/medicine - bioethics fellowship
$298,0002024 tax year
St Mellitus College Trust · Education: theology - nicaea 325th anniversary project
$255,1132024 tax year
University of Hong Kong · Education history of religion - faith and eurban civilizations in asia
$200,0002024 tax year

Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.

Officers and directors

Robert Bick — Successor Secretary
Kenneth Churchill — Director
Gregory Jones — Director
Jennifer Peters — Director
Virginia Dunn-Biggar — Director
Walter Czarnecki — Director
Peter Mcdonald — President / Chief Operating Officer
Jonathan Aitken — Director
Mark Maurice — Treasurer / Assistant Secretary

From the latest Form 990-PF filing

3 years of tax filings

Year	Total expenses	Grants paid	Assets	Filing document
2022 tax year	$5,753,093	$4,324,028	$40,797,389	Filing for 2022 tax year
2023 tax year	$8,037,556	$6,418,151	$42,498,174	Filing for 2023 tax year
2024 tax year	$7,980,469	$6,975,127	$41,769,894	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.