Charter School Growth Fund
At a glance
Key takeaways
- Your work fits this foundation if you run or lead public charter schools that outperform the local district and the state average, with three to five years of demonstrated success and a plan to serve 250–1,000 additional students, typically by adding one to three schools within two years.
- Organisations whose work falls outside charter school growth should not apply, since the foundation funds nonprofits that run high-performing public charter schools.
- Most grants are modest: about 8 in 10 fall between $18,000 and $500,000, half of its grants to organisations are $150,000 or less, and its largest grant was $5,000,000, so size your request to the programme you approach, with Seed stated at $250,000 to $750,000 for single programmes and Scale from $750,000.
- The filing shows that 66% of its grant dollars to organisations went to organisations it had also funded in an earlier filing, so existing relationships matter.
- For Scale, begin with the brief questionnaire; for Seed, applications run September–November.
Overview
Charter School Growth Fund is a US private foundation based in Broomfield, CO.
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 Fund supports nonprofit organizations that run high-performing public charter schools, particularly leaders seeking to expand those schools and serve more students. Through its Seed and Scale strategies, it invests in early-stage and later-stage growth, pairing funding with strategic, financial and leadership support. Its selection approach emphasizes sustained academic performance, a sound growth plan, committed leadership and financial sustainability. It seeks organizations serving students from underserved backgrounds and operating in communities with few high-quality public-school options. The Fund looks for schools and networks with the capacity and ambition to grow, including leaders serving students who have limited access to high-quality public schools. Its approach includes relationship-building, customized goals, support from peers and practical resources to help school networks address the challenges of growth.
Themes
- Charter school growth
- Underserved communities
Geographic Focus
No geographic focus is stated; the filings show grants mainly in Texas, California, Colorado, New York, District of Columbia and the United States.
How to apply
For Scale, organisations begin by completing a brief questionnaire; the Fund follows up to learn more before reviewing the school’s academic performance and overall health.
Deadlines: Seed applications run September–November.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2023 filing, 66% 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 672 grants to organisations were $150,000 or less.
What the foundation says:
- Applicants should show three to five years of demonstrated success in a school, district or charter-school-network leadership role.
- Applicants should have schools that outperform the local district and perform well compared with the state average.
- Applicants should be committed to serving students from underserved backgrounds in communities with few high-quality public-school options.
- Applicants should show a vision to grow and serve 250–1,000 additional students, typically by adding one to three schools within two years.
- Organizations should be financially sustainable and not depend on significant philanthropy after their networks finish growing.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2023.
Grant dollars by state
6 other states: 18%
Outside the US or with no state on the filing: 18%
- The largest single recipient received 5% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2023, 66% of grant dollars went to organisations Charter School Growth Fund 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 397 grants in tax year 2023 by size
Median $150k (tax year 2023)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- Texas Charter School Development · Charter school capacity-building$5,000,0002023 tax year
- Third Future Schools · Charter school growth$3,175,0002023 tax year
- Texas Charter Schools Association · Charter school capacity-building$3,000,0002023 tax year
- City Fund · Charter school capacity-building$2,500,0002023 tax year
- Georgia Charter Schools Association · Charter school capacity-building$2,000,0002023 tax year
- Third Future Schools · Charter school growth$1,850,0002023 tax year
- Santa Fe South Schools · Charter school growth$1,500,0002023 tax year
- Coral Academy of Science Las Vegas · Charter school growth$1,500,0002023 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Nicole Pullen Ross — Director
- Reed Hastings — Director
- Anilu Vazquez-Ubarri — Director
- Fidel Vargas — Director
- Jim Rahn — Director
- Tom Joyce — Director
- Constance Jones — Director
- Mason Hawkins — Director
- Dee Haslam — Director
- Allan Golston — Director
- John Fisher — Director, Board Chair
- Darryl Cobb — President
- Pamela Inbasekaran — COO
- Rich Billings — Partner / Assistant Secretary
- Julie Maier — Partner / Vice President
- Kevin Hall — CEO
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
2 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 tax year | $113,002,214 | $72,600,025 | $676,007,354 | Filing for 2022 tax year |
| 2023 tax year | $147,020,188 | $99,829,945 | $676,412,712 | 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 Charter School Growth Fund?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- (303) 217-8090
- Broomfield, CO
- chartergrowthfund.org
Applying to Charter School Growth Fund?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- (303) 217-8090
- Broomfield, CO
- chartergrowthfund.org