The Shen Family Foundation is a dedicated supporter of performing and visual arts, concentrating substantial general operating gifts to major cultural institutions — particularly in New York. Their giving emphasizes large, unrestricted support for flagship performing-arts organizations (notably classical ballet companies) and prominent museums and theaters. The foundation appears to prioritize institutional strength and public-facing arts organizations over small arts projects or local community arts groups.
The Shen Family Foundation’s recent giving is anchored by large, unrestricted support for flagship performing-arts institutions, especially New York City Ballet and American Ballet Theatre. Those two organizations account for some of the foundation’s largest grants in the recent record, alongside major support for Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Brooklyn Museum. The pattern points to a funder that favors established cultural institutions with broad public reach rather than small project-based arts programs. The foundation’s arts emphasis extends across ballet, museums, theaters, and other presenting organizations. New York City Ballet received $350,000 in 2025, while American Ballet Theatre Fdn received $260,000 in both 2023 and 2024. Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Institute of Arts, and Signature Theatre also appear among the larger grants, reinforcing a portfolio centered on institutional arts infrastructure. Its recent grants also show that support is not limited to a single discipline. The Shen Family Foundation backed ballet societies, theater groups, and historic or educational institutions in the same overall giving pattern, with general operating grants used repeatedly across recipients. That combination of scale, unrestricted support, and repeat backing of major cultural organizations defines the foundation’s profile.
In classical ballet, the foundation gave $100,000 in 2025 to Ballet Society Inc and $100,000 in 2025 to Princeton Ballet Society, while earlier grants to Princeton Ballet Society included $75,000 in 2023 and $60,000 in 2024. Those awards sit alongside repeated support for ballet institutions at a higher level. Museum and historic-site funding appears in grants such as $159,550 in 2023 and $157,000 in 2024 to Brooklyn Museum, plus $35,000 in 2025 and $30,000 in 2024 to Green-wood Historic Fund. The foundation also supported theater presenters and companies, including $110,000 in 2023 to Signature Theatre Inc and $50,000 in 2025 to Transport Group. Education-related recipients also show up in the record, including $65,000 in 2025 to Masters School and $50,000 in 2023 and $25,000 in 2024 to Packer Collegiate Institute.
Typical grant size centers on a median of $20,000, with a p25 of $5,000 and p75 of $40,000, though the recent record also includes much larger awards to major institutions. The foundation gives through general grants rather than program-specific awards, and the recent list shows repeated support for some recipients across multiple years, including American Ballet Theatre Fdn, New York City Ballet, Brooklyn Museum, Princeton Ballet Society, Memorial Sloan-kettering, and Green-wood Historic Fund. The grant profile is institutional and concentrated, with a limited set of organizations receiving multiple awards.
$1.2M
$9.6M
$606K
$1.3M
Most grants fall between $5K and $40K, with a median of $20K.
25th Percentile
$5K
Median
$20K
75th Percentile
$40K
About 0% of grants go to recipients in NY.
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Concentrated, high-dollar grants to a small number of national/regional flagship arts institutions; multiple repeat and general operating grants rather than many small or project-specific awards.
Notable grantees: New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre Foundation, Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Institute of Arts (BAM), Signature Theatre
Grantmaking is overwhelmingly U.S.-based, with 79 grants to U.S. recipients in the recent country distribution. The largest concentration of recipient locations is New York, especially New York City and Brooklyn. Recent grants also reached Princeton, New Jersey; Montgomery, Alabama; and Waterford, Connecticut. In New York, examples include New York, NY and Brooklyn, NY, showing that the foundation’s local geography reflects where recipient institutions are clustered rather than the foundation’s headquarters.
Its recent grants go mainly to large arts institutions: New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre Fdn, Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Institute of Arts, Signature Theatre Inc, and other major cultural organizations. The pattern is concentrated in performing arts, museums, and presenting institutions.
The typical grant size is $20,000 at the median, with p25 at $5,000 and p75 at $40,000. The recent record also includes larger awards such as $350,000 to New York City Ballet and $260,000 to American Ballet Theatre Fdn.
Yes. The recent grants list shows recurring awards to several organizations across multiple years, including American Ballet Theatre Fdn, New York City Ballet, Brooklyn Museum, Princeton Ballet Society, Memorial Sloan-kettering, and Green-wood Historic Fund.
By recipient location, New York is the top state, and the grants cluster around New York City and Brooklyn. The country distribution is entirely U.S.-based, with 79 grants to U.S. recipients.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALABAMA SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL | MONTGOMERY, AL | $256,780 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| NEW YORK CITY BALLET | NEW YORK, NY | $250,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| BALLET THEATRE FOUNDATION INC | NEW YORK, NY | $190,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| BROOKLYN INSTITUTE OF ARTS | BROOKLYN, NY | $163,100 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY | NEW YORK, NY | $50,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| MASTERS SCHOOL | BOBBS FERRY, NY | $40,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| PROSPECT THEATER COMPANY | NEW YORK, NY | $40,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| ALABAMA VALUES | MONTGOMERY, AL | $38,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| GREEN-WOOD HISTORIC FUND | BROOKLYN, NY | $35,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| YALE UNIVERSITY | NEW HAVEN, CT | $30,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| SIGNATURE THEATRE INC | NEW YORK, NY | $25,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| PACKER COLLEGIATE INSTITUTE | BROOKLYN, NY | $25,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING | NEW YORK, NY | $25,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| THE HOPE PROGRAM | BROOKLYN, NY | $25,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| THE HERE & THERE COLLECTIVE | BROOKLYN, NY | $10,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| PRINCETON BALLET SOCIETY | PRINCETON, NJ | $10,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| NEW JERSEY BALLET COMPANY | FLORHAM PARK, NJ | $10,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| THE JEROME ROBBINS BALLET FESTIVAL | NEW YORK, NY | $7,500 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| NY JAZZHARMONIC | NEW YORK, NY | $5,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| CITY SQUASH | BRONX, NY | $2,500 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| PUBLIC ART FUND | NEW YORK, NY | $2,500 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| THE ALDRICH CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM | RIDGEFIELD, CT | $2,500 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| BROOKLYN BOTANIC GARDEN | BROOKLYN, NY | $2,500 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| THE ACTING COMPANY | NEW YORK, NY | $1,000 | 2026 | GENERAL |
| NEW YORK CITY BALLET | NEW YORK, NY | $350,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| BROOKLYN INSTITUTE OF ARTS | BROOKLYN, NY | $186,250 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| PRINCETON BALLET SOCIETY | PRINCETON, NJ | $100,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| BALLET SOCIETY INC | NEW YORK, NY | $100,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| BALLET THEATRE FOUNDATION INC | NEW YORK, NY | $70,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| MASTERS SCHOOL | BOBBS FERRY, NY | $65,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| TRANSPORT GROUP | NEW YORK, NY | $50,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING | NEW YORK, NY | $50,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| GREEN-WOOD HISTORIC FUND | BROOKLYN, NY | $35,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| ALABAMA SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL | MONTGOMERY, AL | $25,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| YALE UNIVERSITY | NEW HAVEN, CT | $25,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| PACKER COLLEGIATE INSTITUTE | BROOKLYN, NY | $25,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| PROSPECT THEATER COMPANY | NEW YORK, NY | $25,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| MASTERVOICES | NEW YORK, NY | $20,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| OUT OF THE BOX THEATRICS | NEW YORK, NY | $20,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| CLASSIC STAGE COMPANY | NEW YORK, NY | $15,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| PSCLASSICS | PALM SPRINGS, CA | $15,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| THE SYMPHONY SPACE | NEW YORK, NY | $10,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| THE HOPE PROGRAM | BROOKLYN, NY | $10,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| NEW YORK CITY CENTER | NEW YORK, NY | $10,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| BAY STREET THEATRE FESTIVAL INC | SAG HARBOR, NY | $6,085 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| PETER FOLEY MUSIC PROJECT INC | NEW YORK, NY | $5,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| BROOKLYN BOTANIC GARDEN | BROOKLYN, NY | $2,500 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| PUBLIC ART FUND | NEW YORK, NY | $2,500 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| BRIC | BROOKLYN, NY | $2,500 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| THE ALDRICH CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM | RIDGEFIELD, CT | $2,500 | 2025 | GENERAL |
BROOKLYN INSTITUTE OF ARTS
$163,100GENERAL
GENERAL
PROSPECT THEATER COMPANY
$40,000GENERAL
ALABAMA VALUES
$38,000GENERAL
YALE UNIVERSITY
$30,000GENERAL
MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING
$25,000GENERAL
THE HERE & THERE COLLECTIVE
$10,000GENERAL
NEW JERSEY BALLET COMPANY
$10,000GENERAL
THE JEROME ROBBINS BALLET FESTIVAL
$7,500GENERAL
NY JAZZHARMONIC
$5,000GENERAL
THE ALDRICH CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM
$2,500GENERAL
BROOKLYN BOTANIC GARDEN
$2,500GENERAL
THE ACTING COMPANY
$1,000GENERAL
BROOKLYN INSTITUTE OF ARTS
$186,250GENERAL
BALLET SOCIETY INC
$100,000GENERAL
TRANSPORT GROUP
$50,000GENERAL
MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING
$50,000GENERAL
YALE UNIVERSITY
$25,000GENERAL
PROSPECT THEATER COMPANY
$25,000GENERAL
OUT OF THE BOX THEATRICS
$20,000GENERAL
CLASSIC STAGE COMPANY
$15,000GENERAL
PSCLASSICS
$15,000GENERAL
BAY STREET THEATRE FESTIVAL INC
$6,085GENERAL
PETER FOLEY MUSIC PROJECT INC
$5,000GENERAL
BROOKLYN BOTANIC GARDEN
$2,500GENERAL
BRIC
$2,500GENERAL
THE ALDRICH CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM
$2,500GENERAL