C D Spangler Foundation
At a glance
This funder does not accept unsolicited applications. The foundation chooses the organisations it funds itself.
Key takeaways
- The foundation makes grants only to organisations it has preselected and does not accept unsolicited requests, so a cold application is not the route in.
- If your work falls in education or health and human services, which its grants suggest are its main themes, the most useful step is to look for an introduction through an existing contact rather than to send a request.
- About 8 in 10 of its grants fall between $500 and $285,000, and half are $25,000 or less, so a modest request fits best; its largest grant was $10,000,000, so that band is not a ceiling.
- Repeat giving is a strong pattern: 37% of its grant dollars went to organisations it had funded in earlier filings, so ties to existing grantees matter.
- It states no geographic focus, and its grants are mainly in North Carolina, California, District of Columbia, Massachusetts and Georgia, but that is a pattern in the record, not a rule about who may apply.
Overview
C D Spangler Foundation is a US private foundation based in Charlotte, NC.
What they fund
Profile based on the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings (TY2025, TY2023, TY2022) only: no website or other web source for the foundation was found. Every statement is checked against the filings. Sources read on 12 October 2026.
Priority Areas
The Foundation’s recorded giving is concentrated on education and on health and human services: these are the stated purposes for most of the grants. Recipients include schools, colleges and other education-focused organisations, as well as health and human-services charities. Its grant record also includes general programme support for a varied group of nonprofits, including arts and cultural bodies, and a smaller number of grants for religious activities. Giving is concentrated in North Carolina, while the filing record also shows significant grants to organisations in several other states.
Themes
From its grants, not stated by the foundation:
- Educational opportunities
- Health and human services
Geographic Focus
No geographic focus is stated; the filings show grants mainly in North Carolina, California, District of Columbia, Massachusetts and Georgia.
How to apply
The foundation contributes only to preselected charitable organisations and does not accept unsolicited requests.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2025 filing, 37% 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 TY2025 filings, half of its 360 grants to organisations were $25,000 or less.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2025.
Grant dollars by state
6 other states: 2%
Outside the US or with no state on the filing: 2%
- The largest single recipient received 13% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2025, 37% of grant dollars went to organisations C D Spangler Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
- <1% of grant dollars went directly to organisations outside the US (Canada).
- 13% of grant dollars went to intermediaries that regrant to other organisations.
Grants
How much do they typically give?
Share of 131 grants in tax year 2025 by size
Median $27,500 (tax year 2025)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- Ucsf Foundation - MS & Neuroinflammation Center · To assist in health and human services$5,000,0002025 tax year
- National Multiple Sclerosis Society · To assist in health and human services$5,000,0002025 tax year
- FFTC - Charlotte Symphony Orchestra Endowment Fund · Program support$5,000,0002025 tax year
- Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Foundation - Capital Campaign · To assist in educational opportunities$1,000,0002025 tax year
- Charlotte Ballet - Capital Campaign · Program support$1,000,0002025 tax year
- Arts - Capital Campaign · Program support$1,000,0002025 tax year
- Harvard Business School · To assist in educational opportunities$1,000,0002025 tax year
- Habitat for Humanity - Capital Campaign · Program support$500,0002025 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Meredith R Spangler — Chairman
- Meredith Spangler Nelson Rhyne — Vice President / Assistant Secretary
- Meghan G Ellis — Assistant Vice President / Assistant Secretary
- Cindy L Marr — Assistant Vice President / Assistant Secretary
- Abigail R Spangler — Director / President
- Anna Spangler Nelson — Vice President / Director
- W D Cornwell JR — Vice President / Secretary / Treasurer / Director
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
3 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 tax year | $25,890,365 | $25,753,680 | $467,156,525 | Filing for 2022 tax year |
| 2023 tax year | $25,305,306 | $24,538,240 | $525,081,380 | Filing for 2023 tax year |
| 2025 tax year | $28,606,599 | $27,611,795 | $740,175,810 | Filing for 2025 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
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At a glance
Applying to C D Spangler Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- Charlotte, NC
Applying to C D Spangler Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- Charlotte, NC