The Dana Foundation concentrates its small-scale philanthropy on arts and cultural organizations in the Richmond/greater Virginia area, favoring general operating support. Most dollars go to a major regional museum while the remainder funds local arts groups that serve children and community audiences. Grants are focused and recurrent rather than broadly distributed across causes or geographies.
Concentrated, modest number of grants and dollars with repeat funding to a few local arts organizations; majority of funds directed to one flagship museum and the rest to smaller community arts groups.
Dana Foundation Inc’s giving is anchored by a repeated annual commitment to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, which received the largest grants in the record at $31,227 in 2025 and $21,227 in 2024 for general purposes. That pattern points to a funder that concentrates on arts and cultural support rather than spreading dollars across many fields. The foundation’s recent grants also show steady support for Richmond-area organizations serving community audiences, including Scan, Richmond Forum, Little Hands, and 1708 Gallery. General-purpose funding is the common thread across the list, suggesting that grantees are being supported for ongoing operations rather than narrowly defined projects. The grant history is compact and local, with a limited set of recipients appearing more than once across years. Alongside the museum support, the foundation has also funded organizations tied to family services and community well-being, such as Feedmore, Virginia Supportive Housing, and Childrens Home, but the core pattern remains centered on arts institutions and related community organizations in the Richmond area.
Arts and cultural organizations are the clearest focus. Dana Foundation Inc gave $12,500 in 2025 and $10,000 in 2024 to Scan for general purposes, and it supported Richmond Forum with $5,000 in both 2024 and 2025. The foundation also made a $1,000 grant in 2024 to 1708 Gallery. Children and family-facing programming appears in the record as well: Little Hands received $5,684 in 2025 and $500 in 2024, both for general purposes. Community support services are another visible thread, with grants to Feedmore in 2024 and 2025, plus funding for Virginia Supportive Housing, Childrens Home, and Childrens Hospital. Across these areas, the grants are broad-purpose rather than tightly restricted.
The typical grant is modest: the 25th percentile is $1,920, the median is $4,204, and the 75th percentile is $7,500. The record shows repeat giving across years to the same recipients, including the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Scan, Richmond Forum, Little Hands, Feedmore, and V Foundation. All listed grants are general-purpose awards. The foundation is a private foundation rather than an operating charity, and it does not fund individuals or make program-related investments. The pattern is local and concentrated, with support recurring to a small set of organizations rather than moving broadly across many applicants.
$117K
$9K
$94K
$87K
Most grants fall between $2K and $8K, with a median of $4K.
25th Percentile
$2K
Median
$4K
75th Percentile
$8K
About 86% of grants go to recipients in NC.
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Notable grantees: Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, SCAN, Little Hands
Grant recipients are almost entirely in the United States, with 100% of listed grants going to U.S. organizations. Richmond, Virginia is the main city in the record: the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Scan, Little Hands, Richmond Forum, Nami-va, The Next Move, Virginia Supportive Housing, Feedmore, Childrens Home, 1708 Gallery, and Childrens Hospital all appear there. Morrisville, North Carolina appears through V Foundation. Glen Allen, Virginia appears through American Heart Association. The grants also align with the foundation’s local scope, with 86% of grants going to recipients in Virginia.
The record centers on arts and cultural organizations, especially the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Scan, Richmond Forum, and 1708 Gallery. It also includes community-facing support such as Feedmore, Virginia Supportive Housing, Childrens Home, and Childrens Hospital, all given general-purpose awards.
The listed grants are all labeled general purposes. That includes recurring awards to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Scan, Richmond Forum, and Little Hands, which indicates broad-purpose support rather than tightly defined project-only funding.
Yes. The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts appears in 2024 and 2025, as do Scan, Richmond Forum, Little Hands, Feedmore, and V Foundation. The pattern is repeated support rather than one-time giving across a wide pool of recipients.
The grant-size distribution is small and compact. The 25th percentile is $1,920, the median is $4,204, and the 75th percentile is $7,500, with a handful of larger awards above that level going to the museum and Scan.
The foundation gives locally, and 86% of grants go to recipients in Virginia. Richmond, Virginia is the main recipient city in the list, with additional grants to Morrisville, North Carolina and Glen Allen, Virginia.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS | RICHMOND, VA | $31,227 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| SCAN | RICHMOND, VA | $12,500 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| LITTLE HANDS | RICHMOND, VA | $5,684 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| RICHMOND FORUM | RICHMOND, VA | $5,000 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| NAMI-VA | RICHMOND, VA | $4,427 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| THE NEXT MOVE | RICHMOND, VA | $3,467 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| VIRGINIA SUPPORTIVE HOUSING | RICHMOND, VA | $3,250 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| CHILDRENS HOME | RICHMOND, VA | $2,744 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| V FOUNDATION | MORRISVILLE, NC | $2,121 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| FEEDMORE | RICHMOND, VA | $805 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION | GLEN ALLEN, VA | $772 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| CHILDRENS HOSPITAL | RICHMOND, VA | $200 | 2025 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS | RICHMOND, VA | $21,227 | 2024 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| SCAN | RICHMOND, VA | $10,000 | 2024 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| RICHMOND FORUM | RICHMOND, VA | $5,000 | 2024 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| V FOUNDATION | MORRISVILLE, NC | $4,204 | 2024 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| FEEDMORE | RICHMOND, VA | $2,840 | 2024 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| 1708 GALLERY | RICHMOND, VA | $1,000 | 2024 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
| LITTLE HANDS | RICHMOND, VA | $500 | 2024 | GENERAL PURPOSES |
VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS
$31,227GENERAL PURPOSES
SCAN
$12,500GENERAL PURPOSES
LITTLE HANDS
$5,684GENERAL PURPOSES
RICHMOND FORUM
$5,000GENERAL PURPOSES
NAMI-VA
$4,427GENERAL PURPOSES
THE NEXT MOVE
$3,467GENERAL PURPOSES
VIRGINIA SUPPORTIVE HOUSING
GENERAL PURPOSES
CHILDRENS HOME
$2,744GENERAL PURPOSES
V FOUNDATION
$2,121GENERAL PURPOSES
FEEDMORE
$805GENERAL PURPOSES
AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION
$772GENERAL PURPOSES
CHILDRENS HOSPITAL
$200GENERAL PURPOSES
VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS
$21,227GENERAL PURPOSES
SCAN
$10,000GENERAL PURPOSES
RICHMOND FORUM
$5,000GENERAL PURPOSES
V FOUNDATION
$4,204GENERAL PURPOSES
FEEDMORE
$2,840GENERAL PURPOSES
1708 GALLERY
$1,000GENERAL PURPOSES
LITTLE HANDS
$500GENERAL PURPOSES