The Gust Foundation
At a glance
Key takeaways
- The Gust Foundation supports school leaders and communities to build inclusive and equitable practices across whole schools, so your request will fit best if your work centres on school-wide inclusion.
- Its typical grant band runs from $2,500 to $100,000, and half of its 108 grants to organisations were $10,000 or less, so a modest request around $10,000 is a realistic starting point, although its largest grant was $550,000 and the band is not a ceiling.
- For a school partnership, a principal should explore the Partnership page on its website and complete the application, after which a team member makes contact; for other programmes, the filing says the method varies.
- Most of its grant dollars went to organisations it had funded in an earlier filing, so the foundation looks relationship-led, but a first approach is still worth making.
- The filing gives no geographic limit or deadlines, so check the Partnership page directly before you write.
Overview
The Gust Foundation is a US private foundation based in Chicago, IL.
What they fund
Profile derived from the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings (TY2025, TY2024, TY2023) and its website, with every statement checked against those sources. Sources read on 7 October 2026.
Priority Areas
The Gust Foundation partners with school leaders and communities committed to refining and elevating the quality of school-wide inclusive and equitable practices for all students. It supports school leadership and staff in cultivating an inclusive vision and developing structures to sustain it across the school community. Its school partnerships engage administrators and leadership teams in professional learning, strategic conversations, reflection and planning, then help diffuse the vision among staff. The work develops the knowledge, skills and resources needed for inclusive, equitable classrooms and instruction. The Foundation pairs professional development and other resources with implementation and sustainability planning, and scaffolds support so a school can carry on the work independently.
Themes
- Inclusive school practices
Geographic Focus
No geographic focus is stated; the filings show grants mainly in Illinois, Massachusetts and Michigan.
How to apply
For a school partnership, interested principals explore the Partnership page and complete the application; a team member contacts them after receipt.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2025 filing, 90% of its grant dollars to organisations went to organisations it had also funded in its TY2023 or TY2024 filing.
- Grant size: Across its TY2023, TY2024 and TY2025 filings, half of its 108 grants to organisations were $10,000 or less.
What the foundation says:
- The Foundation seeks school leaders committed to innovating beliefs, structures and practices to provide equitable support and opportunity.
- The Foundation describes reflective administrators who see themselves as agents of change and work with staff through modelling and scaffolding as conditions for change.
- The Foundation seeks partners aligned in pursuing its guiding beliefs, while recognising that partners may be at different points of progress.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2023–2025.
Grant dollars by state
4 other states: 1%
- The largest single recipient received 30% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2025, 90% of grant dollars went to organisations The Gust Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
- No grants were paid directly to organisations outside the US.
Grants
How much do they typically give?
Share of 37 grants in tax year 2025 by size
Median $20,000 (tax year 2025)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- Saint Ignatius College Preparatory · General purpose/baseball & hockey program$525,0002025 tax year
- Team Impact · General purpose$300,0002025 tax year
- Concussion Legacy Foundation · General purpose$265,5292025 tax year
- Mission of Our Lady of Angels Church · General purpose/supplies for church$164,5392025 tax year
- Shirley Ryan AbilityLab · General purpose$138,0402025 tax year
- Greater Chicago Food Depository · General purpose$100,0002025 tax year
- Chicago Mission Hockey · General purpose$52,5002025 tax year
- The Night Ministry · General purpose$50,0002025 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Diane Edmundson — Director
- M Susan Gust — Director
- Christopher L Gust — Director
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
3 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 tax year | $2,838,903 | $1,704,335 | $54,307,508 | Filing for 2023 tax year |
| 2024 tax year | $2,534,075 | $1,549,945 | $112,856,370 | Filing for 2024 tax year |
| 2025 tax year | $3,063,424 | $2,050,906 | $153,086,085 | 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
Registers and filings
Other sources
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At a glance
Applying to The Gust Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
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Applying to The Gust Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required