AirCast Foundation Inc concentrates its philanthropy almost exclusively on orthopedic research and professional support for the orthopedic surgery community. Its grants are large and targeted, funding national specialty societies and research-focused organizations that advance surgical techniques, trauma care, and musculoskeletal research. The foundation’s giving is highly focused rather than broadly distributed, privileging established professional organizations and research programs in orthopedics.
Highly concentrated giving: a small number of very large grants, often repeated to the same national orthopedic organizations; focused, mission-aligned investments rather than many small or geographically diverse awards.
Aircast Foundation Inc centers its philanthropy on orthopaedic research, with a visible preference for peer-reviewed, specialty-driven work that serves surgeons, investigators, and professional societies. In the recent grant record, the largest awards went to OREF and AOSSM, including a $500,000 grant to OREF in 2025 and a $402,500 grant to AOSSM in 2024, both for orthopaedic research. Those awards sit alongside additional support for the Orthopedic Trauma Association, Duke Health, and other orthopaedic institutions, showing a pattern of funding established organizations rather than broad public programs. The foundation’s named collaboration programs reinforce that emphasis. Through OREF-administered grants, Aircast supports resident research and research agenda programs, while its partnerships with AAOS, OTA, and AOSSM point to a long-running role in specialty-society research infrastructure. Its grantmaking also reaches individual support in a limited way, including a scholarship at Duke Health.
A core theme is orthopaedic research infrastructure. Aircast Foundation Inc gave $500,000 to OREF in 2025 and $291,000 to OREF in 2024, both tagged for orthopaedic research. It also supported the American Academy of Orthopedic Surg with $15,000 in 2025 and $10,000 in 2024, again for orthopaedic research. Another area is trauma and post-injury care. The foundation gave $100,000 to the Orthopedic Trauma Association in 2023 and $80,000 in 2024 for orthopaedic research, with the OTA collaboration focused on treatment and prevention of post-traumatic arthritis after articular fractures. Sports medicine is also present. Aossm received $402,500 in 2024 and $195,000 in 2025 for orthopaedic research, reflecting the foundation’s backing of return-to-play and outcomes-oriented studies. Smaller grants also reached Duke Health and Rush University Medical Center for orthopaedic research.
Recent awards cluster around a median grant size of $10,000, with a p25 of $10,000 and a p75 of $80,000. At the top end, the record includes several six-figure research grants, including $500,000 and $402,500 awards. The pattern is repeated over multiple years and through recurring institutional partners, especially OREF, AOSSM, the Orthopedic Trauma Association, and the American Academy of Orthopedic Surg. The foundation uses both direct grantmaking and collaborative, peer-reviewed channels, including OREF-administered awards and named society partnerships. It also accepts unsolicited applications in some programs, including the general research grants and several collaborative tracks. Aircast Foundation Inc is an operating foundation by behavior, funding project-specific research rather than operating support across a broad set of nonprofits.
$822K
$8.4M
$351K
$1M
Most grants fall between $10K and $80K, with a median of $10K.
25th Percentile
$10K
Median
$10K
75th Percentile
$80K
About 9% of grants go to recipients in IL.
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Notable grantees: OREF (Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation), AOSSM (American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine), Orthopaedic Trauma Association
Aircast Foundation Inc gives nationally within the United States, and its recent grants are concentrated in a small set of recipient hubs. Rosemont, Illinois appears most often, with grants to OREF, AOSSM, the Orthopedic Trauma Association, the American Academy of Orthopedic Surg, and Olc Education. Chicago, Illinois is another recurring recipient city, including Rush University Medical Center, Rush University, and individual grantees there. Durham, North Carolina appears through Duke Health, while Ft Wright, Kentucky appears through The Forum. Florida recipients are limited in the recent record; Naples accounts for the Garden of Hope grants.
The foundation’s recent grant record is centered on orthopaedic research. Named programs and collaborations include resident research, youth sport injury prevention, soft tissue repair and regeneration, trauma research, return-to-play studies, and AAOS research endowment support.
Typical awards are modest relative to the largest grants: the p25, median, and p75 are $10,000, $10,000, and $80,000. The record also includes larger research awards, such as $500,000 and $402,500.
Yes. OREF, AOSSM, and the Orthopedic Trauma Association each appear multiple times across 2023, 2024, and 2025, and the American Academy of Orthopedic Surg also appears in more than one year. The pattern suggests recurring institutional partnerships.
It uses both direct and collaborative grantmaking. Programs include Aircast Foundation Research Grants, OREF collaboration grants, OTA collaborative grants, AOSSM collaborative research, and AAOS research endowment support. Some programs accept unsolicited applications, including the general research grants and several collaborative tracks.
The top state by grant count is Illinois. Recent recipient cities include Rosemont and Chicago, with additional grants to Durham, Ft Wright, and Naples.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OREF | ROSEMONT, IL | $500,000 | 2025 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| AOSSM | ROSEMONT, IL | $195,000 | 2025 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| ORTHOPEDIC TRAUMA ASSOCIATION | ROSEMONT, IL | $50,000 | 2025 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| THE FORUM | FT WRIGHT, KY | $20,000 | 2025 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| DUKE HEALTH | DURHAM, NC | $15,000 | 2025 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ORTHOPEDIC SURG | ROSEMONT, IL | $15,000 | 2025 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| RUSH UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER | CHICAGO, IL | $15,000 | 2025 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| RICHARD KYLE MD | LONG LAKE, MN | $10,000 | 2025 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| GARDEN OF HOPE | NAPLES, FL | $1,600 | 2025 | CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTION |
| AOSSM | ROSEMONT, IL | $402,500 | 2024 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| OREF | ROSEMONT, IL | $291,000 | 2024 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| ORTHOPEDIC TRAUMA ASSOCIATION | ROSEMONT, IL | $80,000 | 2024 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| DUKE HEALTH | DURHAM, NC | $30,000 | 2024 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| THE FORUM | FT WRIGHT, KY | $10,000 | 2024 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ORTHOPEDIC SURG | ROSEMONT, IL | $10,000 | 2024 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| OLC EDUCATION | ROSEMONT, IL | $10,000 | 2024 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| IAN S MICHELSON | CHICAGO, IL | $7,500 | 2024 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| GARDEN OF HOPE | NAPLES, FL | $1,600 | 2024 | CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTION |
| ORTHOPEDIC TRAUMA ASSOCIATION | ROSEMONT, IL | $100,000 | 2023 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| RUSH UNIVERSITY | CHICAGO, IL | $10,000 | 2023 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ORTHOPEDIC SURG | ROSEMONT, IL | $10,000 | 2023 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
| IAN S MICHELSON | ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL | $5,000 | 2023 | ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH |
OREF
$500,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
AOSSM
$195,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
ORTHOPEDIC TRAUMA ASSOCIATION
$50,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
THE FORUM
$20,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
DUKE HEALTH
$15,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ORTHOPEDIC SURG
$15,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
RUSH UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER
ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
RICHARD KYLE MD
$10,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
GARDEN OF HOPE
$1,600CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTION
AOSSM
$402,500ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
OREF
$291,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
ORTHOPEDIC TRAUMA ASSOCIATION
$80,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
DUKE HEALTH
$30,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
THE FORUM
$10,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ORTHOPEDIC SURG
$10,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
OLC EDUCATION
$10,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
IAN S MICHELSON
$7,500ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
GARDEN OF HOPE
$1,600CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTION
ORTHOPEDIC TRAUMA ASSOCIATION
$100,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
RUSH UNIVERSITY
$10,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ORTHOPEDIC SURG
$10,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
IAN S MICHELSON
$5,000ORTHOPAEDIC RESEARCH
Current and upcoming funding from Aircast Foundation that your nonprofit may be able to apply for.
Who can apply: Eligibility follows OREF program rules (varies by grant program).
Deadline: Refer to OREF program deadlines (varies by grant type).
Who can apply: Applicants follow AOSSM eligibility and application rules for the sponsored grants/competitions.
Who can apply: Applicants follow OTA eligibility and application processes for the joint grants.
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