The Arlene & Michael Rosen Foundation
At a glance
Key takeaways
- If your organisation works on housing justice and homelessness, harm reduction and substance use, mental health and wellness, or community healing in Mendocino, San Diego or Oregon, the foundation's stated focus fits you.
- Half of its grants to organisations are $10,000 or less, so a request towards the lower end of its typical band of $10,000 to $200,000 is realistic; that band is not a limit, as its largest grant was about $755,000.
- GO Grants are regionally restricted, so check that your region is covered and join the email list to hear when the GO Grant application is released.
- The foundation emphasises relationships, lived experience and boards and staff that reflect the communities they serve, so a personal introduction and a clear account of these will help, and 35% of its grant dollars went to organisations it had already funded, so building on any existing link is worthwhile.
- Applications are kept brief and reporting is usually a coffee date with a team member.
Overview
The Arlene & Michael Rosen Foundation is a US private foundation based in Santa Barbara, CA.
What they fund
Profile derived from the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings (TY2023, TY2022) and its website, with every statement checked against those sources. Sources read on 7 October 2026.
Priority Areas
The foundation supports grassroots nonprofit leaders and local organisations in vulnerable and overlooked communities, focusing on housing justice and homelessness, harm reduction and substance use, mental health and wellness, and community healing. It describes its grants as unrestricted core operating support and trusts community partners to manage resources for their organisations. GO Grants are designed to resource smaller nonprofits and build a cohort of mission-aligned leaders. The foundation seeks to simplify applications and reporting, emphasises relationships and lived experience, and offers meaningful partnership alongside funding. GO Grants are regionally restricted, while Dollars for Doers reaches nonprofits across the United States and pairs funding with staff volunteering.
Themes
- Housing Justice & Homelessness
- Harm Reduction & Substance Use
- Mental Health & Wellness
- Community Healing
Geographic Focus
Mendocino, CA; San Diego, CA; Oregon.
How to apply
Organisations can join the email list to receive updates on the release date of the GO Grant application.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2023 filing, 35% of its grant dollars to organisations went to organisations it had also funded in its TY2022 filing.
- Grant size: Across its TY2022 and TY2023 filings, half of its 67 grants to organisations were $10,000 or less.
What the foundation says:
- The foundation co-designs GO Grant eligibility criteria with local steering committees and trusted community members, including people with lived experience.
- The foundation supports nonprofits whose boards and staff reflect the diversity, demographics and lived experience of the communities they serve.
- The foundation keeps applications brief and says reporting generally takes the form of a coffee date with a team member.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2023.
Grant dollars by state
2 other states: <1%
- The largest single recipient received 29% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2023, 35% of grant dollars went to organisations The Arlene & Michael Rosen Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
- No grants were paid directly to organisations outside the US.
- <1% of grant dollars went to intermediaries that regrant to other organisations.
Grants
How much do they typically give?
Share of 49 grants in tax year 2023 by size
Median $10,000 (tax year 2023)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- Community Through Hope · South bay street medicine core operating support$505,0002023 tax year
- New Narrative · Flexible program funding$450,0002023 tax year
- Aloha House · General operating grant$350,0002023 tax year
- Fresh Beginnings · Flexible program funding to offer fiscal intermediary support for key staff and define ascending flows future$120,0002023 tax year
- Mendonoma Health Alliance · Flexible harm reduction funding for various programs$112,0002023 tax year
- Mendocino Coast Hospitality Center · Flexible program funding to resource an outreach specialist and launch new harm reduction services.$106,0002023 tax year
- Caron Foundation · Additional support for 5 veterans healing through connection workshops$100,0002023 tax year
- Scripps Health Foundation · General operating funds for the family residency program office$85,0002023 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Leslie Shapiro — Trustee
- Sean Haleen — Trustee
- Tobi Travis — Trustee
- Danielle Crowell — Co-Executive Director
- Jason Satterfield — Co-Executive Director
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
2 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 tax year | $3,445,763 | $1,981,995 | $21,078,249 | Filing for 2022 tax year |
| 2023 tax year | $5,005,955 | $2,374,500 | $18,946,062 | Filing for 2023 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 The Arlene & Michael Rosen Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- contactus@amrf.org
- whit@amrf.org
- lucky@amrf.org
- laura@amrf.org
- Santa Barbara, CA
- amrf.org
Applying to The Arlene & Michael Rosen Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- contactus@amrf.org
- whit@amrf.org
- lucky@amrf.org
- laura@amrf.org
- Santa Barbara, CA
- amrf.org