What Victoria Foundation does

Victoria Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation established in 1924 by Hendon Chubb in Newark, New Jersey, and named after his mother, Victoria Eddis Chubb. The foundation deploys an invitation-based grantmaking model distributing roughly $12-14 million annually across more than 100 grants, with cumulative giving of approximately $380-400 million to over 1,000 partner organizations over its 100-year history. Since 1967, the foundation has concentrated the majority of its grantmaking on Newark, organized around four priority areas: strengthening community power, fostering economic justice, promoting youth self-determination, and responding to pressing needs.

Its core programs include the Thriving Neighborhoods Initiative, a place-based strategy focused on three Newark neighborhoods (Fairmount, Lower Broadway, and Upper Clinton Hill) executed in partnership with anchor nonprofits such as Urban League of Essex County, La Casa de Don Pedro, FOCUS Hispanic Center for Community Development, Ironbound Community Corporation, BRICK Education Network, and Clinton Hill Community Action. Complementary offerings include the NextGen Grantmakers Fund (a youth-led grantmaking initiative launched in 2022 with The Gem Project), the annual Newark Future Forum co-presented with Rutgers University-Newark, and a flagship $50 million South Ward wellness center partnership with BRICK Networks, Saint James Health, and the YMCA of Newark and Vicinity announced in March 2025.

The foundation operates with a lean 10-person staff led by Executive Officer Craig Drinkard—the first person of color to lead the organization since 2022—alongside a CFO, Vice President of Strategy/Impact/Communications, Senior Strategy Officers, and a Director of Grants Management. It is governed by a Board of Trustees currently chaired by Robert Clark (since June 2025). The organization has no proprietary technology, AI capabilities, or commercial revenue model; its economics are driven by endowment returns funding unrestricted, multi-year general operating support to Newark-based nonprofits, with no parent company and no plans for public offering or acquisition.

Name

Victoria Foundation

Legal name

Victoria Foundation

Website

https://victoriafoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1924

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Victoria Foundation is a 100-year-old private philanthropic foundation in Newark, NJ that distributes roughly $12-14 million annually in invitation-based grants to local nonprofits, focusing on community power, economic justice, youth self-determination, and place-based revitalization across three Newark neighborhoods.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Foundation Grantmaking

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Corporate Foundations & CSR Grantmaking (BPAGAKAC), Social Justice & Human Rights Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAN), Grantmaking & Philanthropic Funds (Institutional Donors) (BPADAOAB)

Keywords

• Philanthropic grantmaking
• Private foundation grants
• Community development funding
• Place-based philanthropy
• Nonprofit endowment grants

Headquarters

HQ city

Newark

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, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Grantmaking from Foundation Endowment: Victoria Foundation operates as a private philanthropic foundation distributing grants from its endowment to support community power, economic justice, youth self-determination, and responding to pressing needs in Newark, NJ. The foundation has awarded nearly $400 million to over 1,000 partners over its 100-year history.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Victoria Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation that distributes grants from its endowment to Newark-based nonprofit organizations and community partners. Its grantmaking is invitation-based and aligned with four strategic priority areas: strengthening community power, fostering economic justice, promoting youth self-determination, and responding to pressing needs in Newark, NJ. The Foundation supplements its grantmaking with signature initiatives including the place-based Thriving Neighborhoods Initiative (covering three Newark neighborhoods), the NextGen Grantmakers Fund (youth-led grantmaking), and the annual Newark Future Forum.

Product overview

Victoria Foundation is a philanthropy organization offering a portfolio of grantmaking programs and community initiatives rather than a traditional product-platform. Its core offerings include the Thriving Neighborhoods Initiative (a place-focused approach supporting three Newark neighborhoods: Fairmount, Lower Broadway, and Upper Clinton Hill), the NextGen Grantmakers Fund (a youth-led grantmaking program in partnership with The Gem Project), and the Newark Future Forum (an annual community symposium on equity and empowerment). The Foundation's grantmaking is invitation-based and aligned with its strategic focus areas: strengthening community power, fostering economic justice, promoting youth self-determination, and responding to pressing needs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Thriving Neighborhoods Initiative A place-focused grantmaking and partnership program that supports community power and long-term well-being in three Newark neighborhoods: Fairmount, Lower Broadway, and Upper Clinton Hill. Victoria Foundation works with residents and community organizations in these neighborhoods to amplify community priorities and drive positive change in partnership with local anchor organizations including Urban League of Essex County, FOCUS Hispanic Center for Community Development, La Casa de Don Pedro, BRICK Education Network, and Clinton Hill Community Action.
• NextGen Grantmakers Fund A youth-led grantmaking initiative launched in partnership with The Gem Project, in which Newark youth learn the grant application process as funders and make funding decisions for nonprofits in Newark focused on youth self-determination. Young people work together to establish grant parameters, craft mission and vision statements, and allocate grants.
• Newark Future Forum An annual symposium co-presented with Rutgers University–Newark that brings together leaders, community organizers, youth, and philanthropic organizations to discuss racial equity, community empowerment, economic justice, and youth leadership in Newark.

Quantifiable outcome

• Awarded nearly $400 million to over 1,000 partners over 100 years
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

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, flagship and core.

• ABFE (Association of Black Foundation Executives)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Victoria Foundation staff and board members attended ABFE's 2026 Harambee conference in Oakland, CA, participating in learning about power building and community development alongside Black philanthropy leaders nationwide.
• Kensington Corridor Trust (Philadelphia)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2025Victoria Foundation delegation visited KCT as part of a learning trip to Philadelphia to learn about community ownership models and collective advocacy. KCT holds 32 properties along four blocks in Kensington, stewarded on behalf of about 32,000 residents.
• BRICK Networks, Saint James Health, YMCA of Newark and VicinityflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 March 2025Partnership to develop a $50 million holistic wellness center in Newark's South Ward. Victoria Foundation is proud to support this resident-defined vision for community wellness.
• Rutgers University – NewarkflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 October 2024Co-presented the Newark Future Forum: Building Together on October 12, 2024 at the Paul Robeson Campus Center. The forum brought together leaders, community organizers, youth, and philanthropic organizations to discuss racial equity, community empowerment, economic justice, and youth leadership in Newark.
• Newark Community Development Network (NCDN)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Coalition of Newark Community Development Corporations that Victoria Foundation has long supported with seed funding and decades of general operating support. NCDN is taking steps toward formalization to deepen collaborative work.
• The Gem ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2022Launched the NextGen Grantmakers Fund, a youth-led grantmaking initiative where Newark youth learn the grant application process as funders. Nine Newark youth worked together to establish grant parameters, craft mission/vision statements, and allocate grants to nonprofits.
• LISC-New JerseycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Partnership since 2016 for the Thriving Neighborhoods Initiative, working closely with residents and community organizations in Fairmount and Upper Clinton Hill neighborhoods to amplify community priorities and address historical disinvestment.
• Fairmount Neighborhood Partners (Urban League of Essex County)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Urban League of Essex County in Fairmount neighborhood to foster youth self-determination, economic justice, and expand opportunities for families. Urban League honored Victoria Foundation during its centennial.
• Lower Broadway Partners (FOCUS, La Casa de Don Pedro)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with FOCUS Hispanic Center for Community Development and La Casa de Don Pedro in Lower Broadway neighborhood to foster connected, powerful community with economic vitality. La Casa serves over 50,000 people annually.
• Upper Clinton Hill Partners (BRICK, Clinton Hill Community Action)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with BRICK Education Network and Clinton Hill Community Action in Upper Clinton Hill neighborhood to help families achieve economic prosperity through resident power-building and collaboration.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• The Kresge Foundation: A national private foundation known for place-based American Cities Program and racial-equity grantmaking. Its multi-year, unrestricted funding and explicit focus on community power mirrors Victoria's Thriving Neighborhoods approach at a national scale.
• Surdna Foundation: A family-founded private foundation with a strong place-based, community-power, and racial-equity focus. Surdna's grantmaking style — including support for organizing and movement-building — closely matches Victoria's mission and approach.
• Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation: A New Jersey-based private foundation with comparable scale (~$15-20M annual grants) and a state-level place-based focus across NJ communities. It shares Victoria's model of strategic, programmatic grantmaking rather than open RFPs, and overlaps in arts, education, and community-development priorities.
• The Prudential Foundation: The corporate giving arm of Newark-headquartered Prudential Financial, with strong Newark and NJ focus on education, economic mobility, and community development. Highly comparable given shared Newark geography and overlapping community/economic-justice priorities.
• The William Penn Foundation: A Philadelphia-based private foundation with a place-based strategy focused on children, communities, and the environment in Greater Philadelphia. Its geographic-concentration strategy parallels Victoria's Newark-only model at comparable annual grantmaking scale.

Broad incumbents

• Ford Foundation: A national foundation with significant grantmaking on racial justice, community power, and economic justice — directly aligned themes with Victoria's work. Operates at far greater scale and global geographic scope, but shares the community-centered philanthropic philosophy.
• W.K. Kellogg Foundation: A national private foundation with explicit racial equity, community power, and youth-led grantmaking priorities that overlap with Victoria's strategic framework. Operates at much greater scale and geographic breadth, but converges on community-centered racial-justice strategy.
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: The largest US health-focused private philanthropy, headquartered in Princeton, NJ. While much larger ($500M+ annually) and mission-different (health), it operates from the same NJ geography, co-funds Newark initiatives, and shares a multi-year unrestricted general-support philosophy.
• The Annie E. Casey Foundation: A national private foundation focused on children, families, and community development with place-based strategies in select cities. Shares Victoria's orientation toward community-led change, multi-year commitments, and a youth/self-determination lens.

Others

• Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC): A national CDFI and community-development intermediary that is already a direct partner of Victoria Foundation in the Thriving Neighborhoods Initiative. While not a foundation itself, LISC's place-based community-development model and Newark footprint make it a directly comparable operating partner.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/victoria-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Victoria Foundation