S. Mark Taper Foundation

What S. Mark Taper Foundation does

The S. Mark Taper Foundation is a private family foundation established in 1989 and headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It provides grant funding to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations operating in Southern California, covering Los Angeles, Imperial, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura counties. The foundation operates three grant categories — General Operating Support, Program Support, and Capital Support — with capital grants restricted to organizations located within Los Angeles County and subject to a minimum $100,000 request threshold.

The foundation runs a single annual grant cycle beginning with letters of inquiry (LOIs), processed through the SmartSimple online grants portal. It receives 350-500 LOIs per year and awards 60-80 grants, reflecting a selective review process. Multi-year capital commitments are available, and past grantees are subject to a three-year waiting period before reapplying. The application and review process is centralized, with grantees required to meet geographic and nonprofit-status eligibility criteria.

As a grantmaking foundation rather than an operating business, the entity does not generate commercial revenue; instead, it deploys endowment-derived capital to charitable causes. It functions as a geographically constrained institutional funder with programmatic specialization in regional nonprofit support, relying on third-party SaaS tooling (SmartSimple) for grants management without disclosed proprietary technology investments.

Name

S. Mark Taper Foundation

Legal name

S. Mark Taper Foundation

Website

https://smtfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The S. Mark Taper Foundation is a private Los Angeles-based family foundation that awards 60-80 grants annually to 501(c)(3) nonprofits across five Southern California counties through General Operating, Program, and Capital Support.

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

Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Grantmaking Agencies & Education Program Grants Administration (EDADAHAD)

Keywords

• Philanthropic grantmaking
• Private family foundation
• Nonprofit funding
• Charitable giving
• Foundation grants

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The S. Mark Taper Foundation provides grant funding to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations serving Southern California. It offers three funding types — General Operating Support (unrestricted core funding), Program Support (specific programs/projects), and Capital Support (physical projects such as building purchase, renovation, or equipment). Grants are awarded through one annual grant cycle beginning with a Letter of Inquiry submitted via an online grants portal, followed by full applications for invited organizations.

Product overview

The S. Mark Taper Foundation operates the Online Grants Portal (hosted on SmartSimple) as its primary digital service for managing the grant application process. The Foundation provides three types of grant funding: General Operating Support (unrestricted, core operating support), Program Support (funding for specific programs or projects), and Capital Support (funding for physical projects such as building purchase, renovation, or equipment). The Foundation conducts one annual grant cycle beginning with a Letter of Inquiry (LOI) process, followed by full applications for selected organizations. Funding is provided in five areas: Arts, Civic Affairs, Education, Environment, and Health & Social Services, primarily serving Southern California nonprofits in Los Angeles, Imperial, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura counties.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• General Operating Support Grants Unrestricted core operating support grants provided to eligible 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations serving Southern California. Grantees may allocate funds as they see fit to advance their missions. Priority is given to organizations serving residents of Los Angeles County.
• Program Support Grants Restricted grants funding specific programs or projects run by eligible Southern California 501(c)(3) nonprofits in the areas of Arts, Civic Affairs, Education, Environment, Health, and Social Services. Priority given to organizations serving Los Angeles County residents.
• Capital Support Grants Grants funding physical projects such as building purchase, renovation, construction, or equipment for eligible 501(c)(3) nonprofits. Restricted to organizations based in and serving Los Angeles County, with a minimum request of $100,000. Multi-year grants are available for capital projects.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Regional players

• Annenberg Foundation: Large Southern California-based private foundation funding education, arts, and civic engagement — comparable geographic focus and private grantmaking model, though significantly larger in scale and national in reach.
• Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation: Los Angeles-based private foundation historically funding education, science, and the arts — comparable SoCal family foundation with overlapping Arts and Education priorities.

Direct peers

• Weingart Foundation: Los Angeles-based private foundation providing general operating, program, and capital support to Southern California nonprofits — highly comparable in size, geography, and unrestricted grantmaking philosophy.
• Lon V. Smith Foundation: Los Angeles-based private foundation providing grants to Southern California nonprofits across health, education, and human services — directly comparable SoCal family grantmaker with similar scale and applicant base.
• The James Irvine Foundation: California-focused private foundation funding arts, education, and youth development across the state — directly comparable as a regional private grantmaker serving California nonprofits through structured annual grant cycles.
• The Ahmanson Foundation: Los Angeles-area private foundation providing capital and program grants to Southern California nonprofits — closely comparable geography, private family structure, and capital-grant emphasis.
• The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation: Los Angeles-based private foundation supporting education, social services, health, and civic arts — directly comparable as a SoCal private family foundation with a similar multi-area grantmaking mandate.
• Flora L. Thornton Foundation: Los Angeles-based private foundation funding arts, education, and environment — closely comparable as a smaller LA family foundation with a multi-area grantmaking focus.

Broad incumbents

• The California Wellness Foundation: California-focused private foundation funding health and wellness nonprofits statewide — comparable regional grantmaker with thematic overlap in Health & Social Services funding.
• The California Endowment: Large statewide health-focused foundation — comparable California nonprofit funding footprint but broader health mandate and significantly larger scale than the S. Mark Taper Foundation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/s-mark-taper-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments4 records

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

Frequently asked questions about S. Mark Taper Foundation