Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation
At a glance
Key takeaways
- The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation prioritises Kansas City, so this is the area it funds, with themes including college access and completion, workforce and career development, and entrepreneurship.
- Most grants to organisations are modest: about 8 in 10 fall between $3,750 and $250,000, with a median of $75,000, though larger programme-specific sums exist, such as Implementation grants of $5,000,000 to $20,000,000, for organisations whose work fits that category.
- Applications are accepted through fixed deadlines across multiple windows in the year; begin with the eligibility quiz for the relevant grant type before applying.
- Just over half of its grant dollars to organisations went to groups it had also funded before, which may suggest a degree of relationship-building, though this reflects a share of dollars rather than of grants.
- The Foundation does not fund bricks and mortar or housing, endowments, institutions that discriminate, loans, expenses, or seed capital for a private business, lobbying or political activities, medical support, political, social, or fraternal organisations, religious activities, or requests to fund individuals including direct scholarships.
Overview
Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is a US private foundation based in Kansas City, MO.
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 aligns its grantmaking with college access and completion, workforce and career development, and entrepreneurship, aiming to advance economic mobility and close economic mobility gaps in Kansas City. It seeks projects at the intersection of innovation and impact, especially in essential competencies and skills, education and employer connection, participation and belonging, and equitable access. Its grants support nonprofit organisations building internal capacity and coalitions pursuing systems-level change; it also backs local, regional, and national changemakers whose work can unlock learner potential, clear barriers, and rethink the future of work and learning. Its approach is focused, research-informed and community-informed, valuing bold innovation, collective impact, transparency, accountability, learning and adaptation.
Themes
- College access and completion
- Workforce and career development
- Entrepreneurship
- Essential competencies
- Education-employer connection
- Participation and belonging
- Equitable access
Geographic Focus
Priority: Kansas City.
What They Don't Fund
- Bricks and mortar, including buildings or housing
- Endowments
- Institutions that discriminate
- Loans, expenses, or seed capital for a private business
- Lobbying or political activities
- Medical (physical or mental health)
- Political, social, or fraternal organizations
- Religious activities
- Requests to fund individuals, including direct scholarships
How to apply
Begin with the eligibility quiz for the relevant grant type; it is the stated starting point for checking whether an organisation qualifies.
Deadlines: Multiple application windows throughout the year.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2024 filing, 56% 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 1,353 grants to organisations were $75,000 or less.
What the foundation says:
- The Foundation seeks projects that ignite potential and drive uncommon results through bold innovation, collective impact, transparency, and accountability.
- Capacity Building proposals should clearly identify a specific organisational need and show how addressing it will strengthen work aligned with the Foundation’s strategic priorities.
- Capacity Building proposals should explain why the investment is important at this stage of the organisation’s development and how its benefits will be sustained.
- Project proposals that bring diverse partners to strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem, particularly for underrepresented idea-stage or early-stage entrepreneurs, are especially prioritised.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2024.
Grant dollars by state
6 other states: 5%
Outside the US or with no state on the filing: 4%
- The largest single recipient received 18% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2024, 56% of grant dollars went to organisations Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
- No grants were paid directly to organisations outside the US.
- 7% of grant dollars went to intermediaries that regrant to other organisations.
Grants
How much do they typically give?
Share of 364 grants in tax year 2024 by size
Median $75,000 (tax year 2024)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- Great Jobs KC · Support the establishment of the kansas city talent network to provide more opportunities for adults in the kansas city metro to obtain credentials and secure related employment in high-demand industries. 202207-12771$20,475,5832024 tax year
- Great Jobs KC · Support for scholarships, financial incentives and services to promote college savings for low- and modest-income students and adults needing support to pursue and complete a postsecondary credential or degree. 201607-0836$9,634,0642024 tax year
- School Smart KC · Provide support to close the academic performance gap between students attending district and charter schools within the boundaries of kansas city public schools and the performance of all districts in missouri. 202206-12579$5,000,0002024 tax year
- Ewing Marion Kauffman School · Support for the kauffman school's continued operations and lease during the 2024-25 school year to manage and operate a charter school that prepares students for academic success leading to postsecondary pathways and good jobs. 202405-15041$4,646,6982024 tax year
- Greater Kansas City Community Foundation · Support for kauffman foundation match of associate and trustee contributions. 202403-14908$3,000,0002024 tax year
- Greater Kansas City Community Foundation · Support for matching funds for 501(c)(3) organizations, universities, and government agencies applying for federal grants to improve economic mobility in our region. 202402-14781$3,000,0002024 tax year
- Ewing Marion Kauffman School · Support for the kauffman school's continued operations during the 2023-24 school year to manage and operate a charter school that prepares students for academic success leading to postsecondary pathways and good jobs. 202305-13839$2,896,6982024 tax year
- Real World Initiatives · Support to increase real-world experiences for students facing barriers related to income, and geography, and to increase access to the 2024 prox summer internship program for high school students. 202311-14534$2,750,0002024 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Maurice Watson — Trustee
- Carmen Tapio — Trustee
- John E Tyler III — General Counsel & Secretary
- Paul Schofer — Trustee
- Miriam Rivera — Trustee
- Earl Martin Phalen — Trustee
- Anita Newton — Trustee
- Carlos Rangel — Trustee
- Deangela Burns Wallace — President & CEO
- Esther George — Trustee, Chair
- Karen Daniel — Trustee
- Matt Condon — Trustee
- Mary Susan Chambers — Trustee
- Kristin Bechard — Treasurer
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
3 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 tax year | $192,849,743 | $120,777,350 | $2,746,648,016 | Filing for 2022 tax year |
| 2023 tax year | $146,022,839 | $90,924,548 | $2,999,591,644 | Filing for 2023 tax year |
| 2024 tax year | $154,533,960 | $95,048,595 | $3,030,814,487 | 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 Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- (816) 932-1000
- Kansas City, MO
- kauffman.org
Applying to Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- (816) 932-1000
- Kansas City, MO
- kauffman.org