About Frederick Gardner Cottrell Foundation
The Frederick Gardner Cottrell Foundation concentrates on high-impact support for biomedical innovation and scientific research, privileging translational work that moves discoveries toward clinical or commercial application. They fund technology acceleration and capacity-building (medtech incubators, regulatory science, university research centers) and also make targeted investments in scientific infrastructure and regional natural history institutions. Grants are large and often repeated to the same organizations, indicating multi-year partnerships with research-focused institutions.
Focus Areas
Translational therapeutics and regulatory science (e.g., C-Path Institute)Medical device commercialization and medtech acceleration (e.g., MedTech Innovator)University-based biomedical research and specialty clinical research funds (e.g., Stanford Biodesign, UCLA neuroradiology fund)Scientific research advancement and early-career scientist support (e.g., Research Corporation for Science Advancement)Regional natural history and public science engagement in the Southwest (e.g., Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum)
Who They Fund
charitable organizations / nonprofits
About Frederick Gardner Cottrell Foundation
A defining feature of the Frederick Gardner Cottrell Foundation is its repeated, multi-year support for biomedical translation programs that move research toward clinical use. The largest recent grant in the file is a $3,606,250 award to Medtech Innovator in Los Angeles in 2025, followed by a $3,100,000 grant to C-Path Institute Trxa in Tucson the same year. Those commitments sit alongside other large awards to Stanford Biodesign Fogarty Institute, UCLA Foundation’s International Neuroradiology Excellence Research Fund, and Soteria Precision Medicine Foundation, showing a strong preference for organizations working at the point where science, devices, and patient-facing application meet. The foundation also backs scientific research infrastructure and education, including Research Corporation for Science Advancement and the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum. Its grant record suggests long-running relationships rather than one-off awards, with the same institutions appearing across multiple years. Grants are made to qualified nonprofit organizations in the United States, and the foundation is structured as a private, non-operating foundation supporting scientific research and educational programs.
What Frederick Gardner Cottrell Foundation Funds
In translational therapeutics and regulatory science, the foundation gave $3,100,000 in 2025 to C-Path Institute Trxa for charitable entity support, building on earlier awards in 2024 and 2023. In medical device commercialization and medtech acceleration, it awarded $3,606,250 to Medtech Innovator in 2025, after similar grants in 2024 and 2023. University-based biomedical research also appears in the record: Stanford Biodesign Fogarty Institute received $1,000,000 in each of 2025, 2024, and 2023, and UCLA Foundation’s International Neuroradiology Excellence Research Fund received $927,369 in 2024. The foundation also supports scientific research and educational programs beyond health care, including a 2024 grant of $1,001,000 to Research Corporation for Science Advancement.
How Frederick Gardner Cottrell Foundation Gives
Typical awards are sizable: the grant-size distribution is $10,000 at the 25th percentile, $17,500 at the median, and $92,500 at the 75th percentile, while the recent record also includes multimillion-dollar program grants. The same recipients appear across multiple years, indicating recurring support rather than isolated gifts; Medtech Innovator, C-Path Institute Trxa, Stanford Biodesign Fogarty Institute, and Research Corporation for Science Advancement all recur. The foundation is a private, non-operating foundation and does not fund individuals. Its active program description says it supports scientific research and educational programs at qualified nonprofit organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$3.6M
Total Assets
$70M
Total Revenue
$38.2M
Total Expenses
$4.1M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $10K and $93K, with a median of $18K.
25th Percentile
$10K
Median
$18K
75th Percentile
$93K
Geographic Reach
National15 states funded
About 46% of grants go to recipients in SC.
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
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