What kinds of organizations does the Martha Ellen Tye Foundation fund most often?

The foundation funds Marshalltown and Marshall County institutions tied to arts and culture, education, municipal capacity, youth, human services, and community development. Recent grants include support for the Marshall County Arts & Culture Alliance, Marshalltown Education Partnership Inc, Marshalltown Community Schools, the City of Marshalltown, and community foundation vehicles linked to local philanthropy.

Does the foundation make repeat grants to the same recipients?

Yes. Several recipients appear in multiple years, including Marshalltown Community Schools with $50,000 in 2023, 2024, and 2025, and Marshalltown Education Partnership Inc with $170,000 in 2024 and $80,000 in 2025. Marshall County Arts & Culture Alliance and Fisher Governor Foundation also recur across multiple years.

What is the typical grant size?

The grant size distribution is relatively compact for a local funder: p25 is $4,400, median grant size is $7,488, and p75 is $20,000. The recent grants list also shows larger targeted awards, including six-figure grants to Marshalltown institutions.

Can organizations submit unsolicited requests?

Yes. The listed programs say they accept unsolicited applications. The foundation’s general grantmaking and challenge grant programs are described as open to eligible organizations, and the S.T.E.P. youth philanthropy program also awards grants through a structured local process.

Does the foundation fund only Marshalltown organizations?

No. Most grants go to Marshalltown and Marshall County, but the recent grants list also includes recipients in Des Moines, San Antonio, and one grant in Mexico. Even so, Iowa recipients account for the clear majority of grants, and 64% of grants go to recipients in the foundation’s HQ state.

Martha Ellen Tye Foundation

Name: Martha Ellen Tye Foundation — grants, 990 financials & funding data
Creator: Kindora

ActiveMutual & Membership Benefit

MARSHALLTOWN, IAWebsite6417528340

About Martha Ellen Tye Foundation

The Martha Ellen Tye Foundation concentrates its giving on strengthening Marshalltown and Marshall County civic life through sizable, targeted awards to local institutions. Major support flows to arts and cultural organizations, municipal projects, K–12 education partnerships, and regional philanthropic infrastructure, often through repeat grants to the same organizations. Grants are few but large, focused on sustaining core community players rather than broad, national funding.

Focus Areas

Marshalltown/Marshall County arts & cultural institutionsLocal municipal capacity and civic projects in Marshalltown (city government support)K–12 education partnership funding serving Marshalltown schoolsRegional philanthropic infrastructure and grantmaking (community foundations and donor-advised vehicles)

Who They Fund

college/university students (scholarship recipients)local community members (community marketing beneficiaries)arts organizations (e.g., chamber dance company)nonprofit organizations receiving annual/director grants

About Martha Ellen Tye Foundation

The Martha Ellen Tye Foundation’s clearest pattern is sustained, large support for Marshalltown institutions that anchor civic life: arts, education, city capacity, and local philanthropic infrastructure. In 2025, it gave $260,000 to the Marshall County Arts & Culture Alliance and $250,000 to the Fisher Governor Foundation, illustrating how the foundation backs organizations that sit at the center of community programming and local grantmaking. Similar long-running support appears in Marshalltown Education Partnership Inc., which received $170,000 in 2024 and $80,000 in 2025, and in Marshalltown Community Schools, which received $50,000 in 2023, 2024, and 2025. The foundation also funds public-sector and faith-based community assets, including the City of Marshalltown, County of Marshall, and St. Paul's Episcopal Church. Its giving is not broad or dispersed across many issue areas; it is concentrated in targeted awards to a small set of local institutions that serve Marshalltown and Marshall County.

What Martha Ellen Tye Foundation Funds

Arts and culture are a major thread in the foundation’s grantmaking. Marshall County Arts & Culture Alliance received $212,500 in 2024 and $60,320 in 2023, both listed as annual contributions. Education is another recurring area: Marshalltown Community Schools received $50,000 in each of 2023, 2024, and 2025, while Marshalltown Community College Foundation received $37,500 in 2025 for scholarships after earlier scholarship support of $22,500 in 2024 and 2023. Civic and municipal support also appears in the recent grants list, including $125,000 to the City of Marshalltown in 2023 and $25,000 to County of Marshall in 2025. The foundation also backs community philanthropy infrastructure through Greater Des Moines Community Foundation grants tied to STEP and director’s grants.

How Martha Ellen Tye Foundation Gives

Typical grant size is moderate-to-large for a place-based funder: the 25th percentile is $4,400, the median is $7,488, and the 75th percentile is $20,000. The recent grants list shows repeated support to the same recipients across multiple years, especially Marshalltown-based organizations and institutions. The foundation uses annual contributions, director’s grants, outright grants, and challenge grants, and it operates a youth philanthropy program through S.T.E.P. Unsolicited applications are accepted in several listed programs. The pattern is best described as recurring, relationship-based grantmaking rather than one-time awards.

Financial Snapshot

Annual Giving

$1M

Total Assets

$27.9M

Total Revenue

$2.1M

Total Expenses

$1.5M

Typical Grant Size

Most grants fall between $4K and $20K, with a median of $7K.

25th Percentile

$4K

Median

$7K

75th Percentile

$20K

Geographic Reach

Regional10 states funded

Funding intensity

Low

High

Headquarters

Funding intensity

Low

High

Where Martha Ellen Tye Foundation Funds

Top 2 recipient countries by grant volume for Martha Ellen Tye Foundation.

Rank	Country	Grants	Total	Share
1	United StatesDomestic	116	$3M	99.2%
2	Mexico

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Recipient	Location	Amount	Year	Purpose
MARSHALL COUNTY ARTS & CULTURE ALLIANCE	MARSHALLTOWN, IA	$260,000	2025	ANNUAL CONTRIBUTION
FISHER GOVERNOR FOUNDATION	MARSHALLTOWN, IA	$250,000	2025	DIRECTOR'S GRANT
MARSHALLTOWN EDUCATION PARTNERSHIP INC	MARSHALLTOWN, IA	$80,000	2025	ANNUAL CONTRIBUTION
TRAIL RESOURCES AND IOWA LAND STEWARDS INC	MARSHALLTOWN, IA	$55,000	2025	ANNUAL CONTRIBUTION

Martha Ellen Tye Foundation

About Martha Ellen Tye Foundation

Focus Areas

Who They Fund

About Martha Ellen Tye Foundation

What Martha Ellen Tye Foundation Funds

How Martha Ellen Tye Foundation Gives

Financial Snapshot

Typical Grant Size

Geographic Reach

Where Martha Ellen Tye Foundation Funds

Deep Analysis

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Giving Approach

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Frequently Asked Questions About Martha Ellen Tye Foundation

What kinds of organizations does the Martha Ellen Tye Foundation fund most often?

Does the foundation make repeat grants to the same recipients?

What is the typical grant size?

Can organizations submit unsolicited requests?

Does the foundation fund only Marshalltown organizations?

Open Grant Opportunities

Letter of Intent (LOI) Grant Process