The George Gund Foundation concentrates its recent giving on a small number of large, targeted investments in health and local education initiatives. Major grants support retinal degenerative disease research and Cleveland-centered higher education and scholarship programs, often channeled through established institutions and local intermediaries. The foundation appears to prioritize deep impact in its home region rather than broad, dispersed giving.
Focus Areas
Retinal degenerative disease research (medical research into blindness)Undergraduate living-learning community development at Cleveland State UniversityCitywide scholarship and postsecondary access initiatives in Cleveland (e.g., Say Yes to Education)Strategic partnerships with local institutions and community foundations
Who They Fund
Cleveland residents and neighborhoods (including specific neighborhoods: Shaker Square, Wade Park, southeast expansion)Cleveland Metropolitan School District studentsSay Yes scholars / postsecondary students at Cuyahoga Community College
About George Gund Foundation
A $2.75 million grant to Cleveland State University Foundation for a living-learning community captures the George Gund Foundation’s recent pattern: large, targeted awards tied to specific civic and educational infrastructure in Cleveland. The foundation’s giving also reaches beyond higher education into scholarship pipelines, neighborhood development, and medical research, including repeated support for retinal degenerative disease work through Foundation Fighting Blindness. Several of its biggest awards flow through established local intermediaries such as Cleveland Foundation, Cleveland Neighborhood Progress, and College Now Greater Cleveland, pointing to a strategy built around institutional partners that can move citywide initiatives. The grantee mix suggests a funder that backs long-horizon projects as well as operating support, with grants used to strengthen organizations already working on the region’s education, health, and community-development priorities. Its recent portfolio includes both initiative-based funding and general support, alongside a few unusually large commitments that anchor multi-year efforts in Cleveland and Northeast Ohio.
What George Gund Foundation Funds
In postsecondary access and student success, the foundation gave $2.5 million to Cleveland Foundation for the Say Yes to Education Cleveland Scholarship fund and $1,021,500 to College Now Greater Cleveland Inc for postsecondary success coaches for Say Yes scholars. It also backed the Say Yes Scholars Program at Cuyahoga Community College with a $500,000 grant to College Now Greater Cleveland Inc. In community development, Cleveland Neighborhood Progress received $1.3 million for operating support and another $1.2 million the following year for the same purpose, while New Village Corporation got $500,000 for the Shaker Square project. Health and harm-reduction work appears in a $750,000 grant to Cleveland Foundation for the Say Yes Integrated Health Initiative. Civic engagement also shows up in a $500,000 grant to Ohio Organizing Collaborative The for voter engagement.
How George Gund Foundation Gives
Typical grants cluster at a meaningful mid-to-large scale: the 25th percentile is $25,000, the median is $50,000, and the 75th percentile is $100,000. The recent grants list shows both one-time awards and repeated support for the same organizations across multiple years, including Cleveland Neighborhood Progress, Foundation Fighting Blindness Inc, Cleveland Foundation, College Now Greater Cleveland Inc, Fund for Our Economic Future, and Ohio Progressive Collaborative Education Fund. The foundation is a regular funder, not a DAF, and it also makes program-related investments and funds individuals. Its grants program includes multiple open application programs and several grants of operating support, project support, and initiative-based funding.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$29.8M
Total Assets
$555.9M
Total Revenue
$89.8M
Total Expenses
$40.6M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $25K and $100K, with a median of $50K.
25th Percentile
$25K
Median
$50K
75th Percentile
$100K
Geographic Reach
Local19 states funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Deep Analysis
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Concentrated, high-dollar grants to a very small set of organizations (few grants that are large in size), including repeat funding to a medical research nonprofit and multi-million gifts to local higher-education and community scholarship efforts.
Funding Style
operating support (general unrestricted)capacity building and expansionscholarship funding and college access supportcapital expansion / infrastructure grantsmulti-year / initiative-based funding
Notable grantees: Foundation Fighting Blindness, Inc., Cleveland State University Foundation, Cleveland Foundation
Topics
college access, retention, and postsecondary success (Say Yes Scholars, Cuyahoga CC, First Year Cleveland)comprehensive community development and neighborhood revitalization (Cleveland-focused initiatives, Shaker Square, Wade Park)integrated community health and harm reduction (Say Yes Integrated Health Initiative, syringe exchange, MetroHealth partnerships)civic engagement and healthy democracy / voter engagementracial equity and racial justice initiativesclean energy and climate transition (Power A Clean Future Ohio, senior climate advisor)retinal degenerative disease research
Where George Gund Foundation Makes Grants
Giving is highly concentrated in Ohio: 82% of grants go to recipients in the HQ state, and the top state by grant count is also OH. Cleveland appears repeatedly across the recent grants list, along with other Ohio locations such as Columbus and Youngstown. Outside Ohio, recent grants also reached Columbia, Maryland; Washington, DC; San Francisco, California; and Los Angeles, California. The recipient-country distribution is entirely U.S.-based.
Frequently Asked Questions About George Gund Foundation
What kinds of work does The George Gund Foundation support most often?
Recent grants center on education, neighborhood development, health, civic engagement, and retinal degenerative disease research. Examples include support for the Say Yes scholarship pipeline, Cleveland neighborhood projects, the Say Yes Integrated Health Initiative, voter engagement, and repeated grants for retinal degenerative disease research.
Does The George Gund Foundation fund organizations outside Cleveland?
Yes, but its giving is still heavily concentrated in Ohio. The recipient list includes Ohio cities such as Cleveland, Columbus, and Youngstown, and also shows grants to organizations in Columbia, Maryland; Washington, DC; San Francisco, California; and Los Angeles, California.
What is a typical grant size?
The grant-size distribution is $25,000 at the 25th percentile, $50,000 at the median, and $100,000 at the 75th percentile. Recent grants range much higher for major initiatives, including multimillion-dollar awards for Cleveland State University Foundation and Foundation Fighting Blindness Inc.
Does the foundation make repeated grants to the same organizations?
Yes. The recent grants list includes multiple awards to Cleveland Neighborhood Progress, Foundation Fighting Blindness Inc, Cleveland Foundation, College Now Greater Cleveland Inc, Fund for Our Economic Future, and Ohio Progressive Collaborative Education Fund across more than one year.
Can organizations submit unsolicited applications?
Yes. Several active programs are marked as accepting unsolicited applications, including Social Justice, Creative Culture and Arts, Public Education, Climate and Environmental Justice, and Economic Justice and Community Power.
Latest 990 Filing
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Open Grant Opportunities
Current and upcoming funding from George Gund Foundation that your nonprofit may be able to apply for.
Open nowRolling / open intakeAward: $10K – $100K
The George Gund Foundation General Grantmaking Program
Climate and environmental justiceCreative culture and artsEconomic justice and community power+3 more
Who can apply: Organizations or projects must fit the Foundation’s grantmaking priorities and guidelines. The Foundation does not have a Letter of Intent process. The Foundation’s grantmaking is focused primarily on the Greater Cleveland community and related Ohio work; applicants should review the grant guidelines to determine organizational and project fit.
Deadline: November 15, March 15, and August 15 annually; proposals up to $100,000 may sometimes be considered between board meetings and applications are welcomed at any time.
climate changeclean energysustainable transportation+6 more
Who can apply: Organizations with a presence in Cleveland and/or Ohio. Successful applicants connect their work to one or more issue areas in the Foundation’s What We Believe statement. The program does not currently prioritize environmental education, youth or leadership development in the environmental field, or land trusts without a local water-specific focus.
Deadline: Winter meeting: November 15; Summer meeting: March 15; Autumn meeting: August 15.
climate changeclean energysustainable transportation+8 more
Who can apply: Organizations with a presence in Cleveland and/or Ohio; work or policy advocacy must focus on climate-related issues and connect to one or more issue areas in the Foundation’s What We Believe statement. The Foundation does not prioritize environmental education, youth or leadership development in the environmental field, or land trusts without a local water-specific focus.
Deadline: Proposals are considered three times a year. Visible deadlines: November 15, 2026 and March 15, 2027. The Foundation also welcomes applications at any time and may consider requests up to $100,000 between board meetings.
economic mobilitygood jobsaffordable housing+4 more
Who can apply: Local organizations whose work has a direct impact on the neighborhoods and residents of the City of Cleveland. The program particularly values work benefiting marginalized groups and organizations with leadership representative of the communities served. It does not currently prioritize direct service organizations for specific industries/sectors, pitch competitions, standalone job readiness and training programs, or direct grants to community development corporations for general operating support.
Deadline: Winter meeting: November 15; Summer meeting: March 15; Autumn meeting: August 15.
social justicepoverty reductionfamily economic stability+9 more
Who can apply: Organizations advancing equity for historically marginalized people and connecting their work to one or more issue areas in the Foundation’s What We Believe statement. The program supports public policies and direct-impact work related to basic needs and justice systems.
Deadline: Proposal deadlines: July 15, November 15, and March 15 (three review cycles per year).
arts organizationsoperating supportarts administration and leadership+3 more
Who can apply: Arts organizations located in or making a direct impact in the City of Cleveland. The program does not currently prioritize individual artists, art acquisitions, art exhibitions, theater or film productions, organizations not working in the City of Cleveland, or art education initiatives not primarily serving Cleveland Metropolitan School District.
Deadline: Winter meeting: November 15; Summer meeting: March 15; Autumn meeting: August 15.
Deadlines and eligibility are summarized from public sources and may change — always confirm the details on the funder's official application page before applying.
