The Lisa and Steven Tananbaum Family Foundation gives in a highly concentrated way, with the majority of dollars flowing to a small set of major institutions—especially art museums and Jewish organizations. Their pattern suggests a donor-advised, relationship-driven style that supports flagship cultural institutions in New York and South Florida, alongside select Jewish, education, and civic causes. They also make occasional strategic gifts to policy, health, and international relief organizations, but these are clearly secondary to their core commitments.
Highly concentrated giving to a handful of repeat grantees, with large multi-grant commitments to core institutions and smaller opportunistic gifts to a broader set of charities.
A single general-purpose grant of $5,581,151 anchors the Lisa and Steven Tananbaum Family Foundation’s recent giving, and it is joined by other large unrestricted awards to major cultural institutions and a liberal arts college. The foundation’s pattern is straightforward: a small number of very large gifts, often labeled for general purpose or unrestricted contribution for exempt purposes, with most of the activity centered on arts, culture, and select education. The Museum of Modern Art appears repeatedly in the recent grants list, including a $1,000,000 award, a $145,000 award, a $50,000 award, and a $25,000 award in 2025, showing sustained support for a single institution across multiple grants. Another substantial grant went to Vassar College for $1,160,000, indicating that higher education is part of the portfolio alongside museum philanthropy. Palm Beach-area institutions also appear in the giving record, including the Norton Museum of Art, the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County, and The Palm Beach Police and Fire Foundation. Across the listed grants, the foundation favors flexible support over restricted project funding.
Arts and culture are the clearest theme in the foundation’s recent grants. The Museum of Modern Art received $1,000,000 in 2025, followed by additional unrestricted gifts of $145,000, $50,000, and $25,000. In South Florida, the Norton Museum of Art received two separate $500,000 grants in 2025, both described as unrestricted contributions for exempt purposes. Higher education is also part of the mix: Vassar College received $1,160,000 as an unrestricted contribution for exempt purposes. Beyond those core areas, the foundation made smaller unrestricted grants to Ballrooom Marfa, the Metropolitan Opera, and Southern Oregon University Foundation, showing attention to cultural and educational institutions beyond Florida and New York.
The foundation gives at a very high ticket size. Typical grant size is tightly clustered around $5 million, with a p25 of $4,937,562, a median of $5,001,737, and a p75 of $5,291,444. The recent record also shows repeat support to the same recipient within the same year, including multiple grants to The Museum of Modern Art and to the Norton Museum of Art. The foundation appears to use a family foundation structure and relies on flexible giving: most awards are unrestricted or for general purpose/exempt purposes. The available record does not show an application process.
$4M
$55.1M
$10.3M
$4.1M
Most grants fall between $5K and $100K, with a median of $25K.
25th Percentile
$5K
Median
$25K
75th Percentile
$100K
About 29% of grants go to recipients in NY.
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Notable grantees: The Museum of Modern Art, Norton Museum of Art, Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County, Council on Foreign Relations, Chabad on Campus Dutchess Inc
Grant recipients are entirely U.S.-based in the recent sample. New York and Florida stand out most clearly: New York recipients include Purchase, Poughkeepsie, and New York City, while Florida recipients include Palm Beach, West Palm Beach, Juno Beach, and Pompano Beach. West Palm Beach and New York City each appear multiple times, reflecting a blend of local South Florida support and gifts to national institutions. The foundation’s recipient footprint also reaches Oregon, Texas, California, and Tennessee through individual grants.
Recent grants show a strong emphasis on arts and culture, especially museums and performing arts, along with selective education and community institutions. The largest awards in the list go to art and cultural organizations and a liberal arts college, and the grants are usually unrestricted or for general purposes.
Typical awards are very large. The grant-size distribution is tightly clustered around $5 million, with a p25 of $4,937,562, a median of $5,001,737, and a p75 of $5,291,444.
Yes. The recent grants list shows multiple awards to the same recipients, including several grants to The Museum of Modern Art and two separate $500,000 grants to the Norton Museum of Art in 2025. That pattern suggests ongoing support rather than one-time only gifts.
The top state by grant count is Florida, and 33% of grants go to recipients in Florida. Recent recipient cities include Palm Beach, West Palm Beach, Juno Beach, and Pompano Beach, alongside New York-area recipients such as New York City, Purchase, and Poughkeepsie.
No, the recent grants are mostly flexible. The records repeatedly use phrases such as general purpose, general, unrestricted contribution for exempt purposes, and unrestricted, indicating that the foundation often provides operating-style support rather than project-specific funding.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VASSAR COLLAGE | POUGHKEEPSIE, NY | $1,160,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART | NEW YORK, NY | $1,000,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| NORTON MUSEUM OF ART | WEST PALM BEACH, FL | $500,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| NORTON MUSEUM OF ART | WEST PALM BEACH, FL | $500,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| CHABAD ON CAMPUS DUTCHESS INC | POUGHKEEPSIE, NY | $250,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART | NEW YORK, NY | $145,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| JEWISH FEDERATION OF PALM BEACH COUNTY | WEST PALM BEACH, FL | $100,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART | NEW YORK, NY | $50,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| THE CHICK MISSION INC | NEW YORK, NY | $30,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| SOUTHERN OREGON UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION | ASHLAND, OR | $27,500 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| THE SUSAN G KOMEN BREAST CANCER FOUNDATION | DALLAS, TX | $27,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| PROSTATE CANCER FOUNDATION | SANTA MONICA, CA | $25,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART | NEW YORK, NY | $25,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| NICKLAUS CHILDREN'S HEALTH CARE FOUNDATION INC | JUNO BEACH, FL | $25,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| THE PALM BEACH POLICE AND FIRE FOUNDATION | PALM BEACH, FL | $25,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| TEMPLE EMANU-EL OF PALM BEACH | PALM BEACH, FL | $10,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| TEMPLE SHOLOM | POMPANO BEACH, FL | $10,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| THE MILKEN INSTITUTE | SANTA MONICA, CA | $10,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| PARK AVENUE SYNAGOGUE | NEW YORK, NY | $10,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| BALLROOM MARFA | MARFA, TX | $10,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| PALM BEACH SYNAGOGUE | PALM BEACH, FL | $5,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| METROPOLITAN OPERA | NEW YORK, NY | $3,775 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| PBC FOUNDATION INC | CORDOVA, TN | $2,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| UNITED WAY OF PALM BEACH COUNTY | WEST PALM BEACH, FL | $2,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES. |
| Norton Museum Of Art | West Palm Beach, FL | $1,500,000 | 2024 | General |
| The Museum Of Modern Art | New York, NY | $1,000,000 | 2024 | General |
| United Jewish Appeal Federeation | New York, NY | $600,000 | 2024 | General |
| Milken Center For Advancing The American Dream | Santa Monica, CA | $334,000 | 2024 | General |
| United Jewish Appeal Federeation | New York, NY | $300,000 | 2024 | General |
| The Museum Of Modern Art | New York, NY | $245,000 | 2024 | General |
| Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County | West Palm Beach, FL | $200,000 | 2024 | General |
| Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County | West Palm Beach, FL | $125,000 | 2024 | General |
| The Museum Of Modern Art | New York, NY | $114,066 | 2024 | General |
| The Museum Of Modern Art | New York, NY | $100,000 | 2024 | General |
| Norton Museum of Art | West Palm Beach, FL | $50,000 | 2024 | General |
| United Jewish Appeal Federeation | New York, NY | $50,000 | 2024 | General |
| The Museum Of Modern Art | New York, NY | $50,000 | 2024 | General |
| Norton Museum of Art | West Palm Beach, FL | $45,000 | 2024 | General |
| Ukraine Releif Fund | Buffalo, NY | $36,000 | 2024 | General |
| Harmonie Preservation Foundation | New York, NY | $35,000 | 2024 | General |
| Israel Tennis & Education Centers Foundation | New York, NY | $30,000 | 2024 | General |
| The Chick Mission Inc | New York, NY | $30,000 | 2024 | General |
| First Serve Foundation Inc | Key Biscayne, FL | $25,000 | 2024 | General |
| Prostate Cancer Foundation | Santa Monica, CA | $25,000 | 2024 | General |
| The Museum Of Modern Art | New York, NY | $25,000 | 2024 | General |
| Temple Emanu-El of Palm Beach | Palm Beach, FL | $15,000 | 2024 | General |
| Chabad on Campus Dutchess Inc | Poughkeepsie, NY | $12,000 | 2024 | General |
| Society of the Four Arts | Palm Beach, FL | $10,000 | 2024 | General |
| Chabad on Campus Dutchess Inc | Poughkeepsie, NY | $10,000 | 2024 | General |
| Park Avenue Synagogue | New York, NY | $5,023 | 2024 | General |
VASSAR COLLAGE
$1,160,000UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
CHABAD ON CAMPUS DUTCHESS INC
$250,000UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
THE SUSAN G KOMEN BREAST CANCER FOUNDATION
$27,000UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
THE PALM BEACH POLICE AND FIRE FOUNDATION
$25,000UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
TEMPLE EMANU-EL OF PALM BEACH
$10,000UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
TEMPLE SHOLOM
$10,000UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
PARK AVENUE SYNAGOGUE
$10,000UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
BALLROOM MARFA
$10,000UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
PALM BEACH SYNAGOGUE
$5,000UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
METROPOLITAN OPERA
$3,775UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
PBC FOUNDATION INC
$2,000UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
UNRESTRICTED CONTRIBUTION FOR EXEMPT PURPOSES.
United Jewish Appeal Federeation
$600,000General
Milken Center For Advancing The American Dream
$334,000General
United Jewish Appeal Federeation
$300,000General
United Jewish Appeal Federeation
$50,000General
Ukraine Releif Fund
$36,000General
Israel Tennis & Education Centers Foundation
$30,000General
First Serve Foundation Inc
$25,000General
Temple Emanu-El of Palm Beach
$15,000General
Chabad on Campus Dutchess Inc
$12,000General
Chabad on Campus Dutchess Inc
$10,000General
Park Avenue Synagogue
$5,023General