Did you know that there are currently 70,000 private foundations located in the U.S.? These foundations provide an estimated 1.2 million grants each and every year. Of all these foundations approximately 5,600 give grants (including scholarships) directly to individuals. The following databases will help you locate local foundations that either provide direct assistance in the form of grants or provide assistance to individuals.

Unlike information on federal programs information on private foundation sources are not centralized because the money is not coming from one place. So, if you want a centralized listing of private foundations you must first understand how it all works. Under the freedom of information law anyone including businesses and non profits have the right to information including the financial data of corporations and foundations. Thanks to the internet and advanced search technology it is now possible for individuals and anyone for that matter to access centralized information on virtually every private foundation in the U.S. The organizations below have contacted the IRS, purchased IRS tax return forms on every U.S. foundation for approximately $1,100, and compiled, by hand, information on all of these foundations. Within their databases they have constructed a listing of each foundation. Each listing contains information on the foundation including a description on what funding is available, who it is available for, contact information including phone numbers and addresses, how much money is allocated for their charitable contributions, and their website address if available. The best part is this information can be located online. Otherwise, we will show you where to go to access the hard copy versions of these private foundation directories. Locating information on grants within the private sector has never been easier.

The following sources will connect you to centralized databases and directories of information regarding private foundations:

• The Foundation Center - Search the best gateway to philanthropy on the web. The Foundation Center manages their personal records of over 70,000 foundations in the U.S. The Foundation Center is the biggest and most respected source for locating information on foundations. You will not find a more centralized source of foundation records anywhere else.



• For individual grant seekers looking for grants and or scholarships that are paid directly to the individual you should start off by searching the following databases and directories:



1. To access everything the Foundation Center has to offer for free you can stop by one of their five libraries / learning centers:

   New York Headquarters:
   79 Fifth Avenue/16th Street
   New York, NY 10003-3076
   Tel: 212-620-4230
   www.fdncenter.org
   New York Library home page:
   fdncenter.org/newyork
   

   Atlanta Field Office:
   50 Hurt Plaza, Suite 150
   Atlanta, GA 30303-2914
   404-880-0094
   fdncenter.org/atlanta
   

   Cleveland Field Office:
   1422 Euclid Avenue, Suite 1600
   Cleveland, OH 44115-2001
   216-861-1934
   fdncenter.org/cleveland
   

   San Francisco Field Office:
   312 Sutter Street, Suite 606
   San Francisco, CA 94108-4314
   415-397-0902
   fdncenter.org/sanfrancisco
   

   Washington Field Office:
   1627 K Street, NW, Third Floor
   Washington, DC 20006-1708
   202-331-1400
   fdncenter.org/washington
   




2. If you do not live near one of the Foundation Center libraries then you can locate one of their local Cooperating Collections in hard copy format by clicking here. The Cooperating Collection provides a core collection of the information found at their libraries. This core collection includes information on foundation grants to individuals.



3. For only $9.95 a month you can access the Foundation Grants to Individuals Online. There are currently other grant seeking products out on the market that sell this exact same information for $40 and up. $10 is not a bad price at all, and plus it offers advanced search capabilities versus a hard copy book. This is an excellent source for individual grant seekers.



4. Foundation Grants to Individuals offers you the same thing as above only in hard copy. The advantage of paying more for this book is there are obviously no renewing subscription fees.



• To search information on assistance offered by over 70,000 foundations we suggest using The Foundation Directory which is an online service offered through the Foundation Center that offers subscriptions starting at $19.95 a month.



• Do you know of any local or national foundations that you would like more information on? If so then the Foundation Center offers a free search tool called the Foundation Finder used to locating information on all nationwide foundations.



• A great place to start searching for assistance offered through foundations is by searching their website. The foundation center offers a great collection of foundation websites including a categorized directory with descriptions on each program:



1. Private Foundations - locate assistance for social, educational, religious, or other charitable activities serving the common welfare.



2. Corporate Grantmakers - locate company sponsored foundations.



3. Grantmaking Public Charities - locate public foundations that primarily benefit unrelated organizations and individuals.



4. Community Foundations - locate foundations that make grants available for charitable purposes in their local community.



• Directories of State Foundations - Private foundations are more likely to give their grants and assistance to the local level. It is always best to search for foundations in your area first. This directory will connect you to state directories of foundations.



• The Council on Foundations - Find community foundations, corporate foundations, giving programs, family and public foundations, and international grant makers.



• Foundations.org - Directory of charitable grant makers.



• The Chronicle of Philanthropy: The Newspaper of the Nonprofit World - Includes The Chronicle Guide to Grants, which is a database of all corporate and foundation grants listed in The Chronicle of Philanthropy.



• GuideStar - Locate information on every U.S. non profit.

College Grant and Scholarship Resources: College Grant Programs Introduction to Private Foundation Grants Private Foundation Grants for College Students How am I Going to Pay for College? Finding Grants for College Two Primary Sources for Free Grant Information