Draper Richards Kaplan (DRK) Foundation

Quick Stats

• Annual Giving: ~$4.3M in direct grants (2023); total expenditure $17.9M including operational support
• Success Rate: Less than 1% reach final investment (approx. 2,225 applications reviewed; ~20 funded per year)
• Decision Time: 8–10 weeks for initial review; 2–4 months for formal diligence; 6 months total for those advancing
• Grant Range: $100,000 – $300,000 USD (disbursed over 3 years; approximately $100,000 per year)
• Additional In-Kind Support: Up to $500,000 in strategic board support and capacity building
• Geographic Focus: Africa, Europe, India, United States; limited opportunities in Latin America

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Contact Details

• Website: www.drkfoundation.org
• Application Portal: tfaforms.com/4887099
• General Enquiries: info@drkfoundation.org
• Offices: Menlo Park, CA (HQ); Boston, MA; Dallas, TX; The Hague, Netherlands; Nairobi, Kenya
• Apply for Funding: drkfoundation.org/apply-for-funding/

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Overview

Founded in 2002 by venture capitalists William H. Draper III and Robin Richards Donohoe as the Draper Richards Foundation, the organisation rebranded in 2010 when Robert S. Kaplan — former Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs and Harvard Business School professor — joined as co-chair. Headquartered in Menlo Park, California, with offices in Boston, Dallas, The Hague, and Nairobi, DRK Foundation operates as a global venture philanthropy firm with assets of approximately $40.5 million (2024).

DRK is deliberately modelled on venture capital: they act as a first institutional investor, take a board seat, and provide intensive hands-on support alongside unrestricted capital. To date, the foundation has made over 270 investments in social impact organisations, collectively impacting more than 610 million lives. Portfolio organisations have gone on to win Skoll Awards, Audacious Project grants, and MacKenzie Scott funding totalling over $1 billion in follow-on support. DRK reviews approximately 2,225 applications per year and funds roughly 20 organisations, making it one of the more competitive but most transformative early-stage funders globally.

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Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

• Core Investment Grant: Up to $300,000 USD in unrestricted funding disbursed over three years (approximately $100,000 per year), delivered in two instalments contingent on milestone achievement. Applicable to nonprofits and mission-driven for-profit entities (C corps, B corps, fiscally sponsored organisations with a plan to spin out).
• In-Kind Strategic Support: In addition to capital, DRK assigns a senior team member to each portfolio organisation's board of directors for three years. This operational support — including fundraising, leadership development, financial management, and scaling strategy — is valued at up to $500,000.

Priority Areas

DRK funds early-stage, post-pilot social enterprises in the following sectors:

• Health (18% of portfolio) — including mental health, low-cost healthcare access, and Medicaid navigation
• Education (18%) — including school meals, teacher training, and edtech tools
• Economic Development (16%) — including skills training, financial capability, and livelihoods
• Social Justice (16%) — including criminal justice reform and civic access
• Environment, Food Security, Water, Sanitation, Civic Engagement — further focus areas

DRK currently prioritises geographies including the United States, Africa, Europe, and India. Limited opportunities exist in Latin America.

Key organisational characteristics DRK seeks:

• Post-pilot, pre-scale stage (typically 2–5 years old, often the first institutional funder)
• Scalable solutions with a credible path to impacting at least 10,000 lives within 5 years
• Founded by full-time (or transitioning to full-time) leaders with proximity to the communities they serve
• Financially sustainable model with earned income potential
• Demonstrable early evidence of impact on target populations
• "Leverage-first" approach: working within existing systems rather than attempting to disrupt them

What They Do Not Fund

• Idea-stage or pre-pilot organisations
• Organisations not intending to grow or scale
• Post-Series A organisations (too mature)
• Projects housed within larger organisations without a clear path to independence
• Solely advocacy- or awareness-focused campaigns
• Promotion of religious doctrine
• Research-only programmes without direct intervention
• 501(c)(4) organisations, S-Corps, LLCs

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Governance and Leadership

Board Co-Chairs:

• William H. Draper III — Founding co-chair; veteran venture capitalist and former head of the United Nations Development Programme
• Robin Richards Donohoe — Co-founder; former venture capitalist and business executive
• Robert S. Kaplan — Co-chair; former Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs; Professor of Leadership at Harvard Business School

Notable Board Members:

• Ruth J. Simmons — Former President of Brown University
• Sue Gordon — Former Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence
• Judy Woodruff — Award-winning broadcast journalist

Senior Leadership:

• Jim Bildner, CEO — Adjunct Lecturer in Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School; Senior Research Fellow at the Hauser Institute for Civil Society; prior 22 years in the private sector including CEO of two public companies and consulting at Deloitte
• Lara Metcalf — Chief Portfolio Officer
• Zeryn Sarpangal — Chief Financial and Administrative Officer
• Kanini Mutooni — Senior Managing Director, Africa Director
• Lisa Jordan — Senior Managing Director, Europe Director

Quotes from Leadership:

"Our model is truly unique in that, in every case, we take a board seat — as an operating partner — working hand-in-hand with our leaders to drive their mission home. We work day and night with our entrepreneurs, opening our networks, facilitating meetings, convening critical resources and working side by side with each leader to help them reach their full potential and build their organisation to scale." — Jim Bildner, CEO

"Organizations that relied on disruption were not as successful as the organizations that leveraged the existing infrastructure. Every single one of them was leveraging what existed on the ground and not blowing it up." — Jim Bildner, CEO, speaking to ImpactAlpha (January 2024)

"The world is so polarized that consensus to get anything done from the top is impossible. When you use 'leverage first,' and over time build your impact into the hundreds of thousands of people, it doesn't really matter what the political condition is, it's so resilient." — Jim Bildner, CEO

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Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

DRK Foundation operates an open, year-round application process accessible through their online portal. The application is designed to take 30–60 minutes and allows applicants to save progress.

Application requirements include:

• Executive summary, pitch deck, or business plan addressing: (1) the problem and solution, (2) impact achieved to date, (3) scaling strategy, (4) leadership team details
• Resume/CV for key leadership (text bios are not accepted)
• Optional: additional supporting materials

DRK encourages applicants to use existing materials if they sufficiently address the prompts, rather than creating new documents. Applications are submitted via the online form at: tfaforms.com/4887099

Decision Timeline

The selection process has five distinct stages:

Stage	Duration	Advancement Rate
1. Submit Application	Initial review: 8–10 weeks	All applicants
2. Early Interviews	Exploratory conversations with DRK team	~20% of applicants
3. Formal Diligence	2–4 month intensive process (conversations, document review, stakeholder interviews, independent research)	<10% of early interview candidates
4. Meet the Team	Additional interviews with the investment committee	Selected candidates
5. Closing Process	Final documents, board member assignment, three-year strategic plan development	Selected candidates

Total timeline from application to decision: Approximately 6 months for candidates who advance to formal diligence.

DRK commits to providing feedback to all applicants regardless of outcome.

Success Rates

• Approximately 2,225 applications reviewed per year
• Approximately 20 organisations funded per year
• ~20% of applicants advance to exploratory conversations (Early Interviews stage)
• Fewer than 10% of those reaching Early Interviews advance to Formal Diligence
• Overall acceptance rate: under 1%

Reapplication Policy

Applicants can reapply. DRK states that organisations may reapply up to twice, with a minimum waiting period of one year following a previous decline.

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Application Success Factors

DRK Foundation provides specific guidance on what they look for and common characteristics of successful applicants:

1. Demonstrate a "leverage-first" approach DRK's research found that organisations leveraging existing systems had nearly three times greater direct impact than those attempting to disrupt systems entirely — and the cost per life impacted was 15 times lower. Applications should clearly articulate how the solution works within and improves existing infrastructure, not replaces it.

2. Show post-pilot traction with measurable impact data DRK explicitly targets organisations that are post-pilot but pre-scale. Applications must demonstrate early evidence of impact with real data. Organisations should be able to credibly articulate how many lives have been affected and provide a measurable plan for scaling.

3. Highlight leader proximity to the community served DRK places strong emphasis on the leader's connection to the problem. Applications should explain the founder's background, why they are uniquely positioned, and the depth of their understanding of the context and community.

4. Articulate a credible path to 10,000+ lives impacted within 5 years DRK uses this as a threshold criterion. Applications that cannot articulate this scale trajectory are unlikely to advance.

5. Present a financially sustainable model Organisations with existing or planned earned income streams are strongly preferred. DRK looks for organisations that will not be perpetually grant-dependent.

6. Demonstrate leadership qualities aligned with a three-year partnership DRK takes a board seat for the full investment period. Applications should show leaders who demonstrate: full-time commitment, a learning mindset, adaptability, and a collaborative spirit open to intensive engagement.

7. Commit to justice, equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging DRK explicitly states they prioritise leaders committed to advancing JEDIB for all. Applications should reflect this commitment concretely, not just rhetorically.

Recent portfolio examples that illustrate DRK's focus:

• Food for Education (Kenya) — School meals programme leveraging existing school infrastructure; grew from 25 children to 500,000 daily meals; 2024 Audacious Project grantee
• SaveLIFE Foundation (India) — Road safety training and legislation working within India's existing policy and legal infrastructure; 2024 Skoll Award winner
• REACH Institute (US) — Trains existing healthcare providers in evidence-based mental health therapies; awarded $300,000 grant in 2023
• For The People (US) — Criminal justice reform using Prosecutor-Initiated Resentencing, working within the existing prosecutorial system; approximately 800 people released from prison

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Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

• The "leverage-first" framing is essential. DRK's research actively drives their investment thesis. Applications must articulate how the model works within and improves existing systems — not disrupts them. This is non-negotiable based on CEO Jim Bildner's public statements and DRK's portfolio analysis.
• You must be post-pilot but pre-scale. DRK is explicitly the first institutional investor. If your organisation has been funded by other major institutional funders, or has already achieved significant scale, you may be too mature. Organisations are typically 2–5 years old at time of application.
• Leadership quality and commitment is weighted heavily. DRK takes a board seat and works intensively alongside founders for three years. The application process assesses whether the leader can operate as a true partner. Demonstrating a collaborative, learning-oriented leadership style is as important as demonstrating impact.
• Data and scalability projections are mandatory. The 10,000 lives within 5 years threshold is a published criterion. Applications without this trajectory will not advance.
• The application is deliberately concise — use existing materials. DRK designed the 30–60 minute application to be accessible. Use your pitch deck or business plan if it covers the required themes. Do not over-engineer the submission.
• Plan for a 6-month process. Only applicants in formal diligence should expect substantive engagement over 2–4 months. Initial response takes 8–10 weeks. Build your pipeline planning around this timeline.
• Reapplication is permitted with a one-year wait. If declined, you may apply again (up to twice). Use the feedback DRK provides and the waiting period to strengthen your evidence of impact and scalability.

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References

1. DRK Foundation Official Website — Homepage, About, Apply for Funding, What We Fund, Selection Process, Impact, Team pages. https://www.drkfoundation.org. Accessed February 2026.

2. DRK Foundation — Apply for Funding page. https://www.drkfoundation.org/apply-for-funding/. Accessed February 2026.

3. DRK Foundation — What We Fund page. https://www.drkfoundation.org/apply-for-funding/what-we-fund/. Accessed February 2026.

4. DRK Foundation — Submit an Application page. https://www.drkfoundation.org/apply-for-funding/submit-an-application/. Accessed February 2026.

5. DRK Foundation — Selection Process page. https://www.drkfoundation.org/apply-for-funding/selection-process/. Accessed February 2026.

6. DRK Foundation — Team page. https://www.drkfoundation.org/about/team/. Accessed February 2026.

7. DRK Foundation — Impact page. https://www.drkfoundation.org/impact/. Accessed February 2026.

8. DRK Foundation — 2024 Audacious Project Grantees news post. https://www.drkfoundation.org/news-post/2024-audacious-project-includes-two-drk-portfolio-organizations/. Accessed February 2026.

9. DRK Foundation — "These Social Ventures are Scaling Impact by Improving Systems, Not Disrupting Them". https://www.drkfoundation.org/news-post/these-social-ventures-are-scaling-impact-by-improving-systems-not-disrupting-them/. Published January 18, 2024. Accessed February 2026.

10. Inside Philanthropy — "From the Ground Up: A Few Things to Know About the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation". https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2023-4-24-from-the-ground-up-a-few-things-to-know-about-the-draper-richards-kaplan-foundation. Published April 24, 2023. Accessed February 2026.

11. ImpactAlpha — "These social ventures are scaling impact by improving systems, not disrupting them". https://impactalpha.com/these-social-ventures-are-scaling-impact-by-improving-systems-not-disrupting-them/. Published January 22, 2024. Accessed February 2026.

12. ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer — Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation (EIN 91-2172351). https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/912172351. Accessed February 2026.

13. The REACH Institute — Press Release: The REACH Institute Awarded $300,000 by Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation. https://thereachinstitute.org/press-release-the-reach-institute-awarded-300000-by-draper-richards-kaplan-foundation-to-expand-mental-health-access/. Accessed February 2026.

14. Candid Foundation Directory — Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation profile. https://fconline.foundationcenter.org/fdo-grantmaker-profile?key=RICH210. Accessed February 2026.