Kettering Family Foundation

About Kettering Family Foundation

A defining feature of Kettering Family Foundation’s recent giving is its repeated support for capital campaigns and major facility work at Dayton institutions, alongside research funding in children’s health and medical innovation. In 2025, it backed the Dayton Society of Natural History with $250,000 for "A River Runs Through Us: Transforming Dayton's Museum of Natural History," and it gave $200,000 to the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance for "Nutcracker Rebuild for the 2024-2025 Season." The foundation also supports health research at a large scale: the Children's Research Institute received $500,000 for the Urea Cycle Disorders Consortium in 2025, matching a prior $500,000 general operating grant in 2023. That pattern fits a portfolio that includes cultural institutions, colleges, community nonprofits, and selected medical partners. Dayton-area organizations appear frequently, but the foundation also makes grants to institutions outside Ohio when the project matches its priorities. Its latest filing shows a national grantmaking reach, with a mix of capital projects, operating support, and time-limited program grants. The recurring themes are infrastructure, institutional capacity, and research or program work tied to specific facilities or initiatives.

What Kettering Family Foundation Funds

Capital projects are a major part of the foundation’s giving. Examples include $250,000 to The Dayton Early College Academy for capital projects, $250,000 to YWCA Dayton for capital projects, and $200,000 to Victoria Theatre Association for "Spotlight on the Future - 2025 Capital Campaign." The foundation also funds higher education and institutional development. It gave $200,000 to Antioch College for "Meaningful Work: Securing Antioch College's National Place in Higher Education," $125,000 to University of Colorado Foundation for the "Colorado Center for Personalized Medicine," and $150,000 to Miami University for a special program/project. In health and research, the foundation supported Kettering Medical Center Foundation with $200,000 for "Innovation Through Molecular Imaging" and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health with $200,000 for the "Patient Pavilion at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center-2024." It also awarded $200,000 to Homefull for "Homefull Healthy Living in West Dayton," showing support for community health and resident services.

How Kettering Family Foundation Gives