
The Foundation was created to support the Archivist of the United States in developing programs, technology, projects, and materials that will introduce and interpret the Archives’ holdings to the American people and to people around the world. The purpose of the Foundation is to educate, enrich, and inspire a deeper appreciation of our country’s heritage through the collected evidence of its history.
The National Archives Foundation’s largest recent award, $2,676,005 in 2023, went to the National Archives Records & Administration for programming, exhibit fabrication, a museum renovation project, July 4 programming, and research. That mix of exhibition work, public programming, and archival research is central to how the foundation operates: it funds projects that interpret the National Archives’ holdings for the public and support programs tied to U.S. history, civics, and rights-related records. Recent grants show a strong emphasis on institution-level work at the National Archives itself, alongside smaller awards for fellowships and programming at presidential libraries. The foundation’s portfolio also includes support for women’s history research through the Cokie Roberts fellowship and related funds, and for civic education initiatives that use U.S. government records to teach learners of all ages. In the grant data provided, awards range from a $7,500 fellowship payment to a seven-figure institutional grant, showing both project-specific and research-oriented funding. The foundation also funds individuals.
Civic education is one of the clearest strands in the foundation’s portfolio. Through the Civics Education Fund, it supports education initiatives, curriculum development, and programs delivered by nonprofit and education partners that use U.S. Government records to teach civics to learners of all ages. Women’s history is another recurring area. The Cokie Roberts Research Fund for Women’s History supports scholarship and projects using archival records, and the Cokie Roberts Fellowship for Women’s History was launched in November 2019 to encourage historians studying overlooked stories of women in U.S. history. The foundation also backs rights-related public history. Its Rights and Justice Fund supports programs and projects that advance civil rights, social justice, and public understanding of rights-related records held in the National Archives, with an emphasis on programming, research, and partnerships with nonprofit organizations.
The grant-size pattern is highly skewed: p25 and median are both $7,500, while p75 is $1,850,420. That indicates a small number of very large institutional awards alongside many modest project grants. The recent list includes both a seven-figure award and several $7,500 grants. The foundation’s giving is project-specific rather than unrestricted, with awards tied to programming, exhibit fabrication, museum renovation, research, and fellowships. It also funds individuals. The available recent-grants sample shows repeat support to the National Archives Records & Administration in consecutive years, suggesting ongoing institutional funding rather than one-off support only. Unsolicited applications are not accepted for the active programs listed.
$1.9M
$18.1M
$10.1M
$7.2M
Most grants fall between $8K and $1.9M, with a median of $8K.
25th Percentile
$8K
Median
$8K
75th Percentile
$1.9M
About 40% of grants go to recipients in DC.
PATRICK M MADDEN
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Grant recipients are overwhelmingly U.S.-based, with 100% of the recent grants going to U.S. recipients. Washington, DC appears most often, including the National Archives Records & Administration there as the largest recipient. Outside DC, the recent grants list includes Little Rock, Arkansas; Portland, Oregon; and Sun Valley, California. The foundation’s geographic scope of giving is regional, and 40% of grants in the dataset went to recipients in DC.
It funds programming, exhibit fabrication, museum renovation projects, research, and fellowships tied to the National Archives. The active program list also shows support for civic education, women’s history, and civil rights or social justice projects using archival records.
No. The active programs listed for the foundation all show “Accepts unsolicited: False,” including the Civics Education Fund, Rightfully Hers Fund, the Cokie Roberts funds, and the Rights and Justice Fund.
The reported grant-size distribution is $7,500 at the 25th percentile, $7,500 at the median, and $1,850,420 at the 75th percentile. That points to many small awards and a smaller number of very large institutional grants.
The foundation’s listed focus areas include civics education, history and historical preservation, museum exhibits, public programs, women’s history research, and rights and justice. Its active funds also emphasize archival access, research, and public history programming.
In the recent grants list provided, all 5 grants went to U.S. recipients, for a 100% U.S. country distribution. The active program geography is also listed as the United States.
2024
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2024.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NATIONAL ARCHIVES RECORDS & ADMINISTRATION | WASHINGTON, DC | $1,850,420 | 2024 | RFP FOR PROGRAMMING & MUSEUM RENOVATION |
| NATIONAL ARCHIVES RECORDS & ADMINISTRATION | WASHINGTON, DC | $2,676,005 | 2023 | AWARD FOR PROGRAMMING, EXHIBIT FABRICATION NATIONAL ARCHIVES, MUSEUM RENOVATION PROJECT, JULY 4 PROGRAMMING, AND RESEARCH |
| WILLIAM J CLINTON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY | LITTLE ROCK, AR | $7,500 | 2023 | AWARD FOR PROGRAMMING |
| LOIS LEVEEN COMPANY LLC | PORTLAND, OR | $7,500 | 2023 | FELLOWSHIP |
| RONALD REAGAN PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY | SUN VALLEY, CA | $7,500 | 2023 | AWARD FOR PROGRAMMING |
NATIONAL ARCHIVES RECORDS & ADMINISTRATION
$1,850,420RFP FOR PROGRAMMING & MUSEUM RENOVATION
NATIONAL ARCHIVES RECORDS & ADMINISTRATION
$2,676,005AWARD FOR PROGRAMMING, EXHIBIT FABRICATION NATIONAL ARCHIVES, MUSEUM RENOVATION PROJECT, JULY 4 PROGRAMMING, AND RESEARCH
WILLIAM J CLINTON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY
$7,500AWARD FOR PROGRAMMING
LOIS LEVEEN COMPANY LLC
$7,500FELLOWSHIP
RONALD REAGAN PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY
$7,500AWARD FOR PROGRAMMING