Panera Bread Foundation focuses its grants on youth development and college/career readiness programs that serve low-income and opportunity youth across the U.S. They favor organizations that provide mentoring, after-school/STEM enrichment, and pathways to college or technical careers, frequently supporting established youth-serving networks alongside local chapters. Grants skew toward program support and capacity for proven models rather than direct scholarship-only giving.
A defining feature of Panera Bread Foundation Inc is its repeated backing of youth-serving organizations that connect low-income and opportunity youth to college and career pathways. The largest recent grants in the file are $150,000 awards to Construction Education Foundation of GA Inc in Atlanta, Achieve Miami Inc in Coral Gables, Boys Hope Girls Hope of St Louis in Richmond Heights, and Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston in Houston, showing a mix of workforce readiness, college access, mentoring, and after-school support. The foundation also appears to favor established intermediaries and local affiliates rather than isolated, one-off projects. Its recent grants include a $125,000 award to An Achievable Dream Middle and High School Inc in Newport News and a $100,000 grant to Road to Hire in Fort Mill, alongside multiple awards to Boys & Girls Clubs, Girls Inc, and college-access nonprofits. The pattern points to program support for organizations serving students who need academic acceleration, advising, and long-term wraparound services. Across the grant list, the foundation’s giving is national in scope and concentrated in youth development, mentoring, STEM enrichment, and postsecondary access for underserved children and teens.
College access is a clear theme. Panera Bread Foundation Inc gave $150,000 to Achieve Miami Inc in Coral Gables for college access and advising work, and $100,000 to College AIM Inc in Atlanta. It also supported College Visions in Providence with $75,000 and Bottom Line in Jamaica Plain with $50,000, both organizations tied to students moving into higher education. The foundation also funds career and technical pathways: Construction Education Foundation of GA Inc received $150,000 in Atlanta, and Road to Hire received $100,000 in Fort Mill. In STEM and academic enrichment, the grants include $100,000 to STEM Paths Innovation Network in Renton and $100,000 to Bridge to Enter Advanced Mathematics in New York. Mentoring and wraparound support also appear in awards to Boys Hope Girls Hope of St Louis and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago.
Typical grants cluster in the mid-five-figure range, with a p25 of $25,000, a median of $50,000, and a p75 of $62,500. Recent awards also reach $75,000, $100,000, $125,000, and $150,000, indicating a layered grant-size structure rather than a single fixed amount. The file shows repeated support for the same organizations across 2024 and 2025, including Achieve Miami Inc, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston, Foundation for a College Education, Girls Inc of Alameda County, and Boys Hope Girls Hope of St Louis. Panera Bread Foundation Inc is listed as a Regular Funder, does not fund individuals, and does not make program-related investments. The grant record does not show an application process.
$2.3M
$1.4M
$1M
$2.3M
Most grants fall between $25K and $63K, with a median of $50K.
25th Percentile
$25K
Median
$50K
75th Percentile
$63K
About 5% of grants go to recipients in CA.
Debbie Roberts
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Moderately concentrated: mid-to-large single grants ($75k–$300k) across ~35 grants with multiple repeat investments in several grantees. Funding emphasizes program support and scalable models, combining national affiliates with place-based partners in cities where Panera has presence.
Notable grantees: Achieve Miami Inc, Boys Hope Girls Hope of St Louis, Girls Inc of Alameda County, Boys & Girls Clubs (multiple local chapters), College AIM / College Visions
The foundation gives nationally, with all recorded grants going to U.S. recipients. Ohio is the top state by grant count, and the recent-grants list includes Breakthrough Cincinnati Inc in Cincinnati. Other frequent recipient locations include Florida, California, Texas, and Illinois, with awards also appearing in Virginia, North Carolina, Washington, New York, and New Jersey. Missouri accounts for 4% of grants, including Boys Hope Girls Hope of St Louis in Richmond Heights. The geography is broad, but the pattern centers on U.S. youth-serving organizations rather than a single metro area.
The foundation supports youth-serving organizations working on college access and advising, after-school and out-of-school time programs, STEM enrichment, mentoring, and career or technical pathways. Recent grants include awards to college-access nonprofits, Boys & Girls Clubs, Girls Inc, and workforce-readiness groups.
The grant-size distribution is centered in the middle range: p25 is $25,000, median is $50,000, and p75 is $62,500. Recent grants also extend up to $150,000, with several $100,000 and $125,000 awards in the file.
No. The recipient country distribution shows 77 grants, or 100.0%, to U.S. organizations.
Yes. The recent-grants list includes repeat awards to several organizations across 2024 and 2025, including Achieve Miami Inc, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston, Foundation for a College Education, Girls Inc of Alameda County, and Boys Hope Girls Hope of St Louis.
Ohio is the top state by grant count. The file also shows multiple grants in Florida, California, Texas, and Illinois, with additional awards in Virginia, North Carolina, Washington, New York, New Jersey, and Missouri.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Construction Education Foundation of GA Inc | Atlanta, GA | $150,000 | 2025 | — |
| Achieve Miami Inc | Coral Gables, FL | $150,000 | 2025 | — |
| Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston Inc | Houston, TX | $150,000 | 2025 | — |
| Boys Hope Girls Hope of St Louis | Richmond Heights, MO | $150,000 | 2025 | — |
| An Achievable Dream Middle and High School Inc | Newport News, VA | $125,000 | 2025 | — |
| STEM Paths Innovation Network | Renton, WA | $100,000 | 2025 | — |
| Foundation for a College Education | East Palo Alto, CA | $100,000 | 2025 | — |
| Girls Inc of Alameda County | Oakland, CA | $100,000 | 2025 | — |
| Bridge to Enter Advanced Mathematics (BEAM) | New York, NY | $100,000 | 2025 | — |
| College AIM Inc | Atlanta, GA | $100,000 | 2025 | — |
| Urban League Twin Cities | Minneapolis, MN | $100,000 | 2025 | — |
| Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Los Angeles | Los Angeles, CA | $100,000 | 2025 | — |
| Oasis - A Haven for Women and Children Inc | Paterson, NJ | $75,000 | 2025 | — |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago | Chicago, IL | $75,000 | 2025 | — |
| College Visions | Providence, RI | $75,000 | 2025 | — |
| Apprentice Learning Inc | Jamaica Plain, MA | $50,000 | 2025 | — |
| createMPLS | Minneapolis, MN | $50,000 | 2025 | — |
| Artists For Humanity Inc | Boston, MA | $50,000 | 2025 | — |
| Life Pieces To Masterpieces | Washington, DC | $50,000 | 2025 | — |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Lowcountry | North Charleston, SC | $50,000 | 2025 | — |
| GirlForward | Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 2025 | — |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Delaware Inc | Dover, DE | $50,000 | 2025 | — |
| Guadalupe Center Inc | Naples, FL | $50,000 | 2025 | — |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri | St Louis, MO | $50,000 | 2025 | — |
| Youth Eastside Services | Bellevue, WA | $25,000 | 2025 | — |
| College Possible Milwaukee | Milwaukee, WI | $25,000 | 2025 | — |
| Junior Achievement of Central Maryland | Baltimore, MD | $25,000 | 2025 | — |
| Wings for Kids | Charleston, SC | $25,000 | 2025 | — |
| Boys & Girls Clubs of Monmouth County | Asbury Park, NJ | $25,000 | 2025 | — |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Palm Beach and Martin | West Palm Beach, FL | $25,000 | 2025 | — |
| Take Stock in Children Palm Beach County | West Palm Beach, FL | $150,000 | 2024 | — |
| Achieve Miami Inc | Coral Gables, FL | $150,000 | 2024 | — |
| Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston | Houston, TX | $150,000 | 2024 | — |
| An Achievable Dream | Newport News, VA | $125,000 | 2024 | — |
| Boys & Girls Clubs of the Coastal Plain | Winterville, NC | $125,000 | 2024 | — |
| Road to Hire | Fort Mill, SC | $100,000 | 2024 | — |
| Breakthrough Cincinnati Inc | Cincinnati, OH | $100,000 | 2024 | — |
| Foundation for a College Education | East Palo Alto, CA | $100,000 | 2024 | — |
| Boys Hope Girls Hope of St Louis | Richmond Heights, MO | $75,000 | 2024 | — |
| Quad County Urban League Inc | Aurora, IL | $75,000 | 2024 | — |
| Girls Inc of Alameda County | Oakland, CA | $75,000 | 2024 | — |
| Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties | Sarasota, FL | $75,000 | 2024 | — |
| Girls Inc of the Pacific Northwest | Portland, OR | $50,000 | 2024 | — |
| College AIM Inc | Atlanta, GA | $50,000 | 2024 | — |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island | Westbury, NY | $50,000 | 2024 | — |
| STEER for Student Athletes | Port Chester, NY | $50,000 | 2024 | — |
| Bottom Line | Jamaica Plain, MA | $50,000 | 2024 | — |
| Minds Matter Colorado | Denver, CO | $50,000 | 2024 | — |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Louisiana | Lake Charles, LA | $50,000 | 2024 | — |
| Geeking Out Kids of Color | Seattle, WA | $50,000 | 2024 | — |
Construction Education Foundation of GA Inc
$150,000Boys Hope Girls Hope of St Louis
$150,000An Achievable Dream Middle and High School Inc
$125,000Bridge to Enter Advanced Mathematics (BEAM)
$100,000College AIM Inc
$100,000createMPLS
$50,000Life Pieces To Masterpieces
$50,000Big Brothers Big Sisters of Delaware Inc
$50,000Guadalupe Center Inc
$50,000Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri
$50,000College Possible Milwaukee
$25,000Junior Achievement of Central Maryland
$25,000Boys & Girls Clubs of Monmouth County
$25,000Big Brothers Big Sisters of Palm Beach and Martin
$25,000Boys Hope Girls Hope of St Louis
$75,000Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties
$75,000College AIM Inc
$50,000Minds Matter Colorado
$50,000Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Louisiana
$50,000