The Richard L. Duchossois Foundation

Private foundation · EIN 82-2759714 · since 2018rldfoundation.org·Chicago, Illinois, South Carolina·Updated 13 October 2026

At a glance

$675k

Annual giving, 2024 tax year

From the Form 990-PF filing

A small fraction of the prior year ($10.2M in 2023 tax year).

$25,000 to $300k

Grant range

From grants in the 990-PF filings

$100k

Typical grant (median)

7 grants in the latest filing

Invitation only

Unsolicited applications are not accepted

This funder does not accept unsolicited applications. The foundation chooses the organisations it funds itself.

Key takeaways

The foundation accepts proposals by invitation only and does not take unsolicited requests, so a grant writer should seek an invitation before sending anything.
Its stated priority is the Chicago metropolitan area, so organisations working elsewhere should weigh that priority carefully before approaching it.
Half of its 15 grants to organisations were $100,000 or less, and the median was $100,000, so a request of around that size suits its usual giving; about 8 in 10 fell between $25,000 and $300,000, a typical band rather than a ceiling.
Work on entrepreneurship, family economic mobility, veteran support or data-focused insights, framed around economic mobility and self-determined progress, is the clearest fit with its stated mission.
With 30% of its grant dollars in its latest filing going to organisations it had funded before, a newcomer should expect repeat giving to be a notable part of its grantmaking.

Overview

The Richard L. Duchossois Foundation is a US private foundation based in Chicago, IL.

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 primarily funds organisations in the Chicago metropolitan area, with work focused on families, veterans and entrepreneurs and on economic mobility. Its entrepreneurship grantmaking supports small businesses and start-ups, including work to strengthen business operations, improve access to growth capital and build jobs and community wealth. Its Strong Families work addresses health, childcare, employment pathways and housing stability for families. For veterans and their families, it supports organisations working on housing, access to benefits, employment and skills. Its approach combines immediate needs with long-term, systemic change and is grounded in listening, learning, data-driven strategy and collaboration. It also uses research, evaluation and data capacity to inform its philanthropy and support learning across the social-sector ecosystem.

Themes

Entrepreneurship
Family economic mobility
Veteran support
Data-focused insights

Geographic Focus

Priority: Chicago metropolitan area. From its grants, not stated by the foundation: South Carolina; Illinois.

How to apply

Proposals are accepted by invitation only.

Application success factors

Repeat giving: In its TY2024 filing, 30% 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 15 grants to organisations were $100,000 or less.

What the foundation says:

Applicants’ goals and strategies should align with the Foundation’s mission of economic mobility and self-determined progress.
Its grantmaking is grounded in listening and learning, expansive thinking, data-driven strategy and collaboration across funders, nonprofits and communities.

Where grants go

From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2024.

Grant dollars by state

South Carolina88%

Illinois7%

Tennessee3%

Louisiana<1%

Texas<1%

Virginia<1%

The largest single recipient received 88% of grant dollars to organisations.
In tax year 2024, 30% of grant dollars went to organisations The Richard L. Duchossois Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
No grants were paid directly to organisations outside the US.

Grants

7 grants in the latest filing analysed · median $100k

How much do they typically give?

Share of 7 grants in tax year 2024 by size

$25k–$50k43%

$50k–$100k0%

$100k–$250k43%

$250k–$500k14%

Median $100k (tax year 2024)

The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:

Opportunity in Overalls · 2024 grant - opportunity in overalls
$300,0002024 tax year
Casa Lake County · 2024 grant - casa lake county
$100,0002024 tax year
Junior Achievement Chicago · General purposes
$100,0002024 tax year
Uniting Voices · 2024 grant - uniting voices chicago
$100,0002024 tax year
Leave No Veteran Behind · 2024 grant -leave no veteran behind
$25,0002024 tax year
International Neighborhood Collaborative · 2024 grant - the dovetail project
$25,0002024 tax year
Warrior Scholar Project Foundation · 2024 grant - warrior scholar project
$25,0002024 tax year

Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.

Officers and directors

Paul Sznewajs — Executive Director
Tyler Lenczuk — Vice President
Mary J Duchossois — Vice President
Robert L Fealy — Treasurer
William M Doyle JR — Secretary
Scott A Mordell — President

From the latest Form 990-PF filing

3 years of tax filings

Year	Total expenses	Grants paid	Assets	Filing document
2022 tax year	$803,159	$700,000	$105,139,533	Filing for 2022 tax year
2023 tax year	$10,653,031	$10,184,598	$127,855,319	Filing for 2023 tax year
2024 tax year	$2,079,300	$675,000	$161,445,814	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.