The Wallace Foundation

What The Wallace Foundation does

The Wallace Foundation is an independent, national private philanthropy established in 1930 by DeWitt and Lila Acheson Wallace, founders of Reader's Digest, and headquartered at 140 Broadway in New York City. The foundation works to expand learning and enrichment opportunities for disadvantaged children through three core focus areas: school leadership, youth development, and the arts (including arts education, afterschool systems, summer learning, and social and emotional learning). It serves grantees that include urban public school districts, nonprofit arts organizations, municipal afterschool intermediaries, and research institutions across at least 24 U.S. states and 57 cities.

The foundation does not sell products or services in a commercial sense. Its core "products" are grant capital, an online Knowledge Center of 250+ free research reports, articles, videos, tools and podcasts, and structured initiatives such as the $75 million Principal Pipeline Initiative (supporting six urban districts) and the StrongNonprofits Toolkit (developed with BDO for nonprofit financial management). Revenue is generated from the foundation's investment endowment, not commercial activity; the foundation historically contributed over $800 million to its causes between 1984 and 2002 under former Board Chairman George V. Grune, and continues to issue multi-million-dollar grant rounds annually.

The foundation operates a "venture philanthropy" model: it funds projects to test innovative ideas, commissions rigorous third-party research (e.g., partnerships with RAND Corporation, Policy Studies Associates, Forum for Youth Investment), and disseminates findings freely to the field. It employs roughly 50 staff, maintains a single New York headquarters, and is governed by a Board of Directors chaired by Kevin W. Kennedy. The foundation is currently in a leadership transition, with Jean S. Desravines assuming the presidency in April 2025 after William I. Miller's tenure, alongside a substantially refreshed executive team appointed between 2023 and 2026.

Name

The Wallace Foundation

Legal name

The Wallace Foundation

Website

https://wallacefoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1930

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Wallace Foundation is a national private philanthropy established in 1930 that uses grantmaking and commissioned research to improve school leadership, youth development, and arts opportunities for disadvantaged children across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Philanthropy

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK), After-School, Tutoring & Academic Enrichment Nonprofits (BPAGADAC), K–12 Support & School Improvement Nonprofits (BPAGADAB)

Keywords

• Education philanthropy
• School leadership programs
• Arts education grants
• Youth development funding
• Nonprofit research

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Foundation Grantmaking: Wallace operates as an endowed foundation that makes grants to organizations working in arts education, school leadership, and youth development. The foundation's revenue comes from its investment endowment, not from commercial products or services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Wallace Foundation is an independent national philanthropy that awards grants to organizations working in arts education, school leadership, afterschool programs, summer learning, social and emotional learning, and nonprofit financial management. It also funds and publishes rigorous, evidence-based research and free knowledge products (toolkits, reports, articles, videos, podcasts) made available to the public to inform practice and policy.

Product overview

The Wallace Foundation operates as a national philanthropy focused on expanding learning and enrichment opportunities for children. Rather than a unified software product, the foundation offers a portfolio of knowledge products and initiatives: the StrongNonprofits Toolkit provides financial management resources for nonprofits; the Knowledge Center houses over 250 free research reports, articles, and tools on education leadership, afterschool programs, summer learning, and arts education; and the Principal Pipeline Initiative is a $75-million program supporting school leadership development across six urban districts. The foundation's approach combines grant-making with knowledge development, testing innovative ideas and sharing research findings to benefit the field.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• StrongNonprofits Toolkit A comprehensive library of free resources—including tools, schedules, guidance, and self-assessments—designed to strengthen nonprofit financial management. Developed in partnership with BDO's Nonprofit & Grantmaker Advisory Services, and aimed at nonprofit executive directors, finance staff, and board members.
• Knowledge Center / Resources Library An online library of 250+ free reports, articles, guides, videos, tools, infographics, and podcasts covering topics in education leadership, afterschool programs, summer learning, social and emotional learning, and arts education. Made available to practitioners, policymakers, and the public at no cost.
• Principal Pipeline Initiative A $75-million multi-year initiative helping six urban school districts develop comprehensive pipelines for recruiting, training, evaluating, and supporting effective school principals. Includes research reports and tools for district implementation, and is targeted at urban K-12 public school districts.
• Youth Development Initiative A multi-year foundation initiative focused on youth development, launched in October 2025 as part of a new strategic direction. Includes published research on long-term benefits of youth participation in community arts programs.
• Multiyear Arts Initiative for Communities of Color A multiyear foundation initiative focused on arts and culture organizations and social science researchers rooted in communities of color. Includes research grants and published studies on arts engagement, youth outcomes, and organizational well-being.

Quantifiable outcome

• Schools with comprehensive principal pipelines markedly outperformed similar schools in comparison districts
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• BDOcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 September 2018Wallace created the StrongNonprofits Toolkit in partnership with BDO's Nonprofit & Grantmaker Advisory Services. BDO developed tools, schedules, guidance, and self-assessments to help nonprofits strengthen financial management. The toolkit includes resources on budgeting, cash flow, operations, data analysis, audit readiness, and governance.
• Policy Studies AssociatescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 July 2013Conducted multi-year evaluation of Wallace's $75 million Principal Pipeline Initiative across six urban school districts. Policy Studies Associates produced the first of several reports examining how districts develop principal pipelines and the impact on student achievement.
• American Youth Policy ForumcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 February 2013Co-sponsored the Better Together conference in Baltimore with four national organizations to share best practices on building local afterschool systems. The conference brought together nearly 400 representatives from 57 cities.
• Collaborative for Building After-School SystemscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 February 2013Co-sponsored the Better Together conference in Baltimore with four national organizations to share best practices on building local afterschool systems.
• National League of Cities—Institute of Youth, Education & FamiliescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 February 2013Co-sponsored the Better Together conference in Baltimore with four national organizations to share best practices on building local afterschool systems. NLC represents and serves municipal governments nationwide.
• Forum for Youth InvestmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 October 2012The Forum for Youth Investment, a nonprofit action tank dedicated to helping communities ensure all young people are ready by 21, partnered with Wallace to release the first-of-its-kind guide on helping cities strengthen and sustain quality in afterschool programs. The guide was commissioned by Wallace and draws on Forum's experience working with over 70 afterschool efforts nationwide.
• RAND CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 August 2011Wallace partnered with RAND on a five-year summer learning demonstration project. RAND researchers examined six school districts and produced comprehensive research on summer learning loss and effective program models. RAND provides objective research and analysis on all levels of education.
• National Center on Time & Learning (NCTL)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNCTL, dedicated to expanding learning time to improve student achievement, co-published research on how schools use expanded school days to integrate arts education. Funded in part by Wallace.
• National Boys & Girls Clubs of AmericaminorOthersReceived $750,000 grant from Wallace in memory of former Board Chairman George Grune. One of two charitable organizations selected by the Grune family to honor his legacy.

Scale indicators11 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: Largest U.S. education grantmaker, with major K-12 and postsecondary investments. Directly comparable as a national, research-driven education funder with multi-state programmatic reach.
• William and Flora Hewlett Foundation: Major private foundation funding K-12 education, arts, and evidence-based philanthropy. Closely comparable in scale, education-and-arts focus areas, and emphasis on rigorous research.
• Carnegie Corporation of New York: National education-focused foundation based in New York. Directly comparable in education grantmaking and dual emphasis on research and field dissemination.
• Lumina Foundation: U.S. private foundation focused on education, particularly postsecondary access and equity. Comparable as an evidence-driven grantmaker shaping field practice through funded research.
• MacArthur Foundation: Major U.S. private foundation funding education, arts, and community development. Comparable in focus area breadth and commitment to evidence-informed grantmaking.
• Doris Duke Charitable Foundation: Private foundation funding arts, education, and youth development through evidence-based grantmaking. Closely comparable in domain mix and research dissemination approach.
• Spencer Foundation: Private foundation dedicated to education research. Comparable in its emphasis on funding rigorous studies and disseminating findings to shape education practice and policy.
• Annie E. Casey Foundation: National private foundation focused on improving outcomes for vulnerable children and youth. Comparable as a U.S. youth development and education funder with state and city-level programmatic reach.
• Kresge Foundation: U.S. private foundation funding education and community development through place-based and equity-oriented grantmaking. Comparable in operating model and education/community portfolio overlap.

Broad incumbents

• Ford Foundation: Larger U.S. private foundation with arts and education portfolios among many other focus areas. Comparable as a New York-based endowed grantmaker but operates at substantially greater scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@wallacefoundation
• Xx.com/wallacefdn
• Facebookfacebook.com/376102262278
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-wallace-foundation

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Wallace Foundation