About Rodel Foundation
The Rodel Foundation is a highly focused, education-oriented funder that concentrates almost all of its giving on improving K–12 education through research, leadership development, and policy work, primarily in the Phoenix/Arizona area. It provides very large, targeted grants to a small set of organizations—frequently repeat grantees—supporting leadership development, education reform initiatives, and occasional community/policy work that complements its education agenda.
Focus Areas
K–12 education policy and research (Rodel Institute)School and education leadership development / professional developmentEducation reform initiatives in Arizona (state and local policy)Civic leadership and community policy work that intersects with education
Who They Fund
local communities / neighborhood residentscommunity-based organizations (CBOs) and local nonprofitsenvironmental nonprofits and stewardship groups
Giving Approach
Concentrated, large-dollar grants to a very small number of repeat grantees; primarily single-issue (education) funding with occasional smaller grants to complementary community/policy organizations.
About Rodel Foundation
The Rodel Foundation’s recent giving is dominated by a single education engine: the Rodel Institute, which received $1,390,000 in 2025 and $1,008,000 in 2024 after a $1,615,000 program-support grant to Rodel Leadearship Insitute in 2023. That pattern points to a funder building long-term capacity around K–12 education policy, research, and leadership rather than dispersing many small grants. Alongside those core investments, the foundation has backed organizations tied to education analysis and reform, including the Aspen Institute, Third Way Institute, and the University of Arizona Foundation - Nicd. Its grant history shows a mix of large anchor grants and smaller follow-on awards, often to the same recipients across multiple years. The Rodel Institute appears repeatedly in the top grant list, as does the Aspen Institute, suggesting continued support for aligned education work over time. The foundation also extends beyond Phoenix when the work fits its agenda, with grants in Washington, DC, Berkeley, and Tucson. Even where the recipient is outside Arizona, the purposes still cluster around education, policy, and leadership development, with occasional community-concern and environment-related grants that sit adjacent to that core mission.
What Rodel Foundation Funds
The Rodel Foundation’s clearest theme is K–12 education and leadership development. It gave $1,390,000 in 2025 and $1,008,000 in 2024 to the Rodel Institute for education work, and earlier directed $1,615,000 to Rodel Leadearship Insitute for program support. A second cluster centers on education policy and ideas work. The foundation awarded $118,728 in 2023 and $103,500 in 2024 to the Aspen Institute, then followed with a $75,000 grant in 2025, all tagged for education. It also supports organizations working on education-adjacent policy and civic issues. Third Way Institute received $250,000 in 2023 and $51,000 in 2024 for community concern, while Save Democracy Inc got $100,000 in 2023 under the same category. A smaller but visible environmental thread appears in grants to The Breakthrough Institute and Clean Air Task Force.
How Rodel Foundation Gives
Typical grants cluster around the middle of the foundation’s range: p25 is $14,875, median is $25,000, and p75 is $75,000. That said, the funder also makes much larger anchor gifts, including seven-figure awards to the Rodel Institute and its related leadership institute. The pattern is not a one-off style; several recipients reappear across multiple years, including the Aspen Institute, Third Way Institute, and the Rodel Institute. The foundation is classified as a Regular Funder and does not fund individuals or make program-related investments.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$2M
Total Assets
$64.1M
Total Revenue
$3.1M
Total Expenses
$3.1M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $15K and $75K, with a median of $25K.
25th Percentile
$15K
Median
$25K
75th Percentile
$75K
Geographic Reach
National7 states funded
About 13% of grants go to recipients in CA.
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Where Rodel Foundation Funds
Top 3 recipient countries by grant volume for Rodel Foundation.
| Rank | Country | Grants | Total | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United StatesDomestic | 55 | $6.3M | 91.7% |
| 2 | United Kingdom | 4 |
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