Foundation For Child Development

What Foundation For Child Development does

The Foundation for Child Development (FCD) is a private 501(c)(3) philanthropic foundation founded in 1900 and headquartered in New York City. One of the oldest foundations in the United States dedicated to child welfare, FCD operates at the intersection of research, policy, and community to advance early childhood development. Its 2025 Strategic Framework explicitly centers children marginalized by racism, xenophobia, and economic inequality, framing the foundation's work around demographic realities in which roughly one in two U.S. children are children of color and one in four live in immigrant families. FCD maintains a small staff of 1-10 employees and is governed by a Board of Directors chaired by Velma McBride Murry, with Vivian Tseng serving as President and CEO.

FCD's core offerings are strategic grantmaking, the Young Scholars Program supporting early-career researchers from historically marginalized communities, and a portfolio of publication and convening series including SPARK (Stories of Power, Agency, Resilience, and Kinship), the Scholars of Color Series, and the Social Justice for Young Children Conversation Series. The foundation also produces policy papers on topics such as pandemic-era child poverty reduction and birthright citizenship, and participates directly in regulatory and judicial advocacy through public comments (e.g., the December 2025 DHS public charge filing) and amicus briefs (e.g., the March 2026 Supreme Court brief). It funds a curated network of grantees including the Children's Defense Fund, CLASP, Children Thrive Action Network, and the United Parent Leaders Action Network.

As an endowment-funded private foundation, FCD does not sell products or services, does not accept unsolicited grant proposals, and does not publicly disclose revenue or grant dollar amounts. Its go-to-market motion is community-led: building influence through curated partnerships, convening researchers and advocates, and content distribution via its website, two email newsletters (The Learning Curve and The FCD Newsletter), LinkedIn, YouTube, Bluesky, and Zoom-hosted webinars. All content is provided free of charge, and FCD's principal value creation comes from grant deployment, narrative-building, and policy positioning rather than commercial revenue.

Name

Foundation For Child Development

Legal name

Foundation for Child Development

Website

https://fcd-us.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1900

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Foundation for Child Development is a 125-year-old private philanthropic foundation that makes strategic grants, funds early-career scholars, and publishes research to advance social justice for young children marginalized by racism, xenophobia, and economic inequality in the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Philanthropic Grantmaking

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Educational Support Services (611710), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Social Justice & Human Rights Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK), Early Childhood Education & Childcare Nonprofits (BPAGADAA), Child Protection & Child Rights (BPAGABAG)

Keywords

• Early childhood philanthropy
• Child development grantmaking
• Social justice research funding
• Early-career scholar support
• Child welfare policy advocacy

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, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic Grantmaking: FCD is a private foundation that generates revenue through its endowment and deploys that revenue as strategic grants to researchers, advocates, community organizations, and peer foundations working at the intersection of early childhood development, social justice, research, and policy. The foundation does not accept unsolicited grant proposals and works with selected partners to advance its strategic priorities centered on children marginalized by racism, xenophobia, and economic inequality.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Foundation For Child Development (FCD) is a 501(c)(3) private foundation that has made strategic grants since 1900 to support early childhood development, with a current focus on social justice for young children marginalized by racism, xenophobia, and economic inequality. The foundation funds researchers, advocates, and community organizations working at the intersection of child development research, policy, and practice. Its core activities include grantmaking, convening scholars and practitioners, and producing publications that advance equity for young children.

Product overview

The Foundation for Child Development is a private philanthropy organization offering grantmaking programs, research initiatives, and publication series. Its core offerings include the Grants Program for strategic funding, the Young Scholars Program supporting early career researchers, and multiple blog/publication series (SPARK, Scholars of Color Series, Social Justice for Young Children Conversation Series). The foundation also produces policy papers and research publications on early childhood development, child poverty, and education implementation. These programs work together to bridge research, policy, and community engagement for advancing social justice for young children.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Grants Program Strategic grantmaking program that funds researchers, advocates, and community organizations working at the intersection of early childhood development, policy, and equity for young children marginalized by systemic racism and economic inequality. Targeted at scholars, advocacy coalitions, and community-based organizations.
• Young Scholars Program Program that supports early-career scholars conducting research on child development, providing funding, mentorship, and a network for emerging investigators studying issues affecting young children.
• SPARK Blog Series Online publication series featuring commentary and analysis on early childhood development, policy, and equity issues affecting young children.
• Scholars of Color Series Publication series highlighting research, perspectives, and contributions of scholars of color working in early childhood development and equity-focused research.
• Social Justice for Young Children Conversation Series Convening and dialogue series bringing together researchers, advocates, and practitioners to discuss social justice issues affecting young children, particularly those marginalized by racism, xenophobia, and economic inequality.
• Getting it Right Research Publication Research publication synthesizing evidence and recommendations on early childhood development practice and policy for practitioners and advocates.
• Cutting Child Poverty in Half and More Publication Policy publication focused on evidence-based strategies to reduce child poverty and improve outcomes for young children.

Quantifiable outcome

• The pandemic-era federal policies supported by FCD and its partners halved child poverty in 2020-2021, including for immigrant families and families of color.
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• NPAG (search firm)minorOthers · 7 May 2026FCD retained NPAG (Not-for-Profit Advancement Group) to lead the search for its next Vice President of Programs following JoAnn Hsueh's departure. Contact: Alejandra Villa at [email protected].
• Over 130 scholars (co-signatories to Supreme Court amicus brief)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 March 2026FCD supported an amicus brief submitted to the Supreme Court in a birthright citizenship case, co-authored by Caitlin Patler and co-signed by over 130 scholars from multiple disciplines including Catalina Amuedo-Dorantes, Peter Catron, Philip Connor, Chloe East, Erin Hamilton, Amy Hsin, Cecilia Menjivar, Rob Smith, Jenny Van Hook, Hirokazu Yoshikawa, and Maria-Elena Young.
• Three Partner Funders (unnamed, co-filing public charge comment)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 December 2025On December 19, 2025, FCD and three partner funders submitted a public comment to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security opposing the proposal to rescind the 2022 public charge rule. The funders jointly argued that DHS should immediately withdraw the proposal and maintain the 2022 rules that protect immigrant families' access to essential supports including health, nutrition, child care, and others.
• William T. Grant FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFCD has a long-standing partnership history with the William T. Grant Foundation, including collaborating in the late 1970s-1980s through FCD President Orville 'Bert' Brim to establish SRCD's Congressional Fellows Program and Washington, DC policy office. FCD President Vivian Tseng previously served as Senior Vice President, Programs at the William T. Grant Foundation, creating an ongoing institutional relationship.
• The CARE FundcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFCD co-hosted a convening with The CARE Fund to collectively reflect on lessons from pandemic-era child policy successes and their implications for coalition-building and advocacy. The two organizations also co-hosted a webinar featuring panelists discussing insights from the 'Cutting Child Poverty in Half and More' policy paper.
• Children's Defense Fund (CDF)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFCD was an early funder of CDF in 1973 (when it was known as the Washington Research Project) and continues to support CDF's work to safeguard child well-being under Reverend Dr. Starsky Wilson's leadership. FCD particularly appreciates CDF's commitment to organizing and power-building alongside its policy activities.
• Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFCD supports CLASP as part of its parent leadership program development to inform policy advocacy agendas. CLASP's work to identify parents' immigration policy priorities and incorporate them into advocacy plans is funded in part by FCD.
• Children Thrive Action Network (CTAN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFCD partners with CTAN to develop a parent leadership program that informs policy advocacy agendas and incorporates parents' immigration policy priorities into CTAN's strategic advocacy plans.
• United Parent Leaders Action NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFCD supports United Parent Leaders Action Network as part of its broader strategy to elevate parent voices in child policy advocacy and develop parent leadership programs in partnership with CLASP and CTAN.
• Sobrato PhilanthropiesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFCD is referenced as a model by Sobrato Philanthropies, which highlighted the Young Scholars Program as an exemplar of how funders can support early-career researchers from historically marginalized communities who are committed to impact on policy and practice. Sobrato has engaged FCD's work as inspiration for its own education grantmaking.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@foundationforchilddevelopm740
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/foundation-for-children
• Xx.com/fcdusorg

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Foundation For Child Development