Independence Foundation

What Independence Foundation does

Independence Foundation is a private, not-for-profit philanthropic foundation headquartered at 200 South Broad Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The foundation operates as a regional grantmaker serving Philadelphia and the surrounding Pennsylvania counties, distributing funds across five core program areas: Arts & Culture; Health Care; Human Services; Legal Aid; and Reentry, Recidivism & Restorative Justice. Beyond direct grantmaking, the foundation runs three fellowship programs (Fellowships in the Arts, Senior Attorney Sabbaticals, and the Honorable Phyllis W. Beck Public Interest Law Fellowships) and a "Beyond Grantmaking" portfolio of cohort programs and peer-led experiences designed to build community among grantee staff and board members.

The foundation operates on a trust-based philanthropy model that emphasizes multi-year, flexible general-operations support and adaptive engagement with grantees. Its product surface is fundamentally programmatic rather than technological: there is no disclosed proprietary technology, software platform, or AI capability. The organization is staffed by a small team of 1-10 employees led by President & CEO Reginald T. Shuford (appointed February 2025), Chief Operating Officer & Director of Programs Jennifer T. Bohnenberger, Senior Program Officer Heather McDanel, and Administrative Director and Board Liaison Kate Tejada. Governance is provided by a Board of Directors chaired by Catherine C. Carr since January 2025.

In 2025 the foundation materially expanded its programmatic activity, launching the $1 million Resiliency Fund to support nonprofits facing federal funding cuts and joining multiple multi-foundation collaborative initiatives including a $6 million Regional Food Fund and the Immigrant and Refugee Emergency Relief Fund. As a private foundation, Independence Foundation does not publicly disclose revenue, endowment size, or annual grantmaking totals; its funding model relies on endowment returns and is not a commercial revenue operation.

Name

Independence Foundation

Legal name

Independence Foundation

Website

https://independencefoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Independence Foundation is a private not-for-profit philanthropic foundation in Philadelphia that distributes grants across five focus areas—arts and culture, health care, human services, legal aid, and reentry/recidivism—and operates fellowship and cohort programs for grantee organizations in the surrounding Pennsylvania region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Foundation Grantmaking

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Arts, Culture & Humanities Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAJ), Social Justice & Human Rights Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAN)

Keywords

• Philanthropic grantmaking
• Nonprofit funding programs
• Community foundation grants
• Trust-based philanthropy
• Fellowship and cohort programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Philadelphia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The Independence Foundation is a private not-for-profit philanthropic foundation that distributes grants to nonprofit organizations across five focus areas: Arts & Culture, Health Care, Human Services, Legal Aid, and Reentry/Recidivism/Restorative Justice, serving Philadelphia and surrounding Pennsylvania counties. In addition to core grantmaking, the foundation offers fellowship programs for artists and attorneys, and cohort-based peer support programs that provide non-monetary support to grantee organizations' staff and board members.

Product overview

Independence Foundation is a private not-for-profit philanthropic organization serving Philadelphia and its surrounding Pennsylvania counties. The foundation operates a multi-faceted offering centered on grantmaking programs across five focus areas (Arts & Culture, Health Care, Human Services, Legal Aid, and Reentry/Recidivism/Restorative Justice), complemented by fellowship programs for artists and attorneys, and cohort-based support initiatives for grantee organizations. The core product is its grantmaking portfolio, supplemented by named fellowships and community-building programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Arts & Culture Funding Grantmaking initiative enriching community and transforming society through support for arts and cultural organizations in the Philadelphia region.
• Health Care Funding Grantmaking initiative focused on improving quality of life and access to health care services for residents of the Philadelphia region.
• Human Services Funding Grantmaking initiative connecting people in need with essential services to support vulnerable populations in the Philadelphia region.
• Legal Aid Funding Grantmaking initiative increasing access to legal representation for those in need within the Philadelphia region.
• Reentry, Recidivism & Restorative Justice Funding Grantmaking initiative imagining new outcomes for those impacted by the criminal justice system through support for reentry and restorative justice programs.
• Fellowships in the Arts Fellowship program supporting emerging and established artists in the Philadelphia region through financial assistance and professional development opportunities.
• Senior Attorney Sabbaticals Fellowship program providing sabbatical opportunities for senior attorneys to pursue public interest work and professional renewal.
• The Honorable Phyllis W. Beck Public Interest Law Fellowships Named fellowship program providing law graduates opportunities to work in public interest law settings, with placements at organizations like the Defender Association of Philadelphia.
• Peer-Led Experiences Cohort-based programming that provides intentionally separate and confidential support for staff and board members of grantee organizations, separate from grantmaking.
• Focused Series Structured cohort programming offering thematic learning and development opportunities for grantee organization leaders.
• Cohort Programs Beyond-grantmaking support programs designed to build community and provide professional development for grantee organization staff and board members.
• The Resiliency Fund A $1 million multi-year investment launched in 2025 providing structural support grants to the nonprofit sector, supplemental to regular grantmaking, for organizations facing federal funding cuts.

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations (PANO)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2025PANO is a recipient of Resiliency Fund grants, providing support to nonprofits through training, best practices, consultation, and discount programs. The partnership provides up-to-date federal, state, and local policy alerts, a legal clearinghouse, and an online navigation hub.
• Nonprofit Repositioning FundmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRecipient of Resiliency Fund grants providing structural support across the nonprofit sector.
• Coordinated Capacity Strengthening InitiativemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRecipient of Resiliency Fund grants to bolster nonprofit capacity during times of upheaval.
• Immigrant and Refugee Emergency Relief FundcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative effort with other foundations to support immigrants and refugees during the current political climate.
• Pennsylvania Fund for Immigrant Rights and EquitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative fund supporting immigrant rights and equity initiatives.
• Regional Food FundcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner$6 million initiative responding to food insecurity and federal funding cuts across Southeastern Pennsylvania, involving collaboration with other foundations.
• Philly GivesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerIndependence Foundation is a sponsor of Philly Gives, a campaign intended to inspire generosity and collective giving by connecting donors, companies, and foundations to local nonprofits.
• DSG | Koya PartnersminorOthersLed the national executive search that resulted in the appointment of Reginald T. Shuford as President and CEO.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Kresge Foundation: Kresge Foundation is a Detroit-based national private foundation with arts, health, education, and human services programming. Comparable as a larger multi-vertical private foundation with place-based and national grantmaking.
• Pew Charitable Trusts: Pew is a much larger Philadelphia-based national foundation operating across multiple programmatic verticals, with a substantial local presence. While far larger, it represents the broader incumbent category of Philadelphia-headquartered foundations.
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is the largest US health-focused philanthropy. Comparable as a thematic overlap with Independence Foundation's Health Care vertical, though at much larger scale and broader geographic scope.

Direct peers

• The Philadelphia Foundation: The Philadelphia Foundation is a community foundation serving the same Philadelphia region as Independence Foundation, with overlapping grantmaking across arts, education, health, and human services. Both are Philadelphia-based, regionally-focused, multi-vertical funders.
• William Penn Foundation: William Penn Foundation is a major private foundation also headquartered in Philadelphia, focused on education, environment, and humanities — closely paralleling Independence Foundation's regional, multi-vertical structure with significant capital deployment.
• Wyncote Foundation: Wyncote Foundation is a Philadelphia-area private foundation supporting arts, education, and civic engagement. Comparable as a similarly-sized Philadelphia regional private foundation with arts and social justice grantmaking overlap.
• Connelly Foundation: Connelly Foundation is a Philadelphia-area Catholic-sponsored private foundation supporting education, human services, and the arts. Directly comparable as a similarly-sized Philadelphia regional private foundation with overlapping verticals.

Regional players

• The Pittsburgh Foundation: The Pittsburgh Foundation is a regional community foundation serving the greater Pittsburgh area with grants across health, education, arts, and human services. Directly comparable as a Pennsylvania-based regional community foundation.
• Heinz Endowments: Heinz Endowments is a Pittsburgh-based private foundation with arts, education, environment, and human services programs. It is comparable as a Pennsylvania regional private foundation with a similar multi-vertical grantmaking model.
• Barr Foundation: Barr Foundation is a Boston-based private foundation focused on arts, climate, and education with a strong regional commitment. Comparable as a multi-vertical regional private foundation with a similar grantmaking approach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

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 Independence Foundation