What Rosenberg Foundation does

Rosenberg Foundation is a private, San Francisco-based philanthropic foundation established in 1935 at the bequest of Max L. Rosenberg, a California fruit and nut distributor. It operates as a traditional grantmaker supporting regional, statewide, and national organizers and advocates advancing racial and economic justice in California. Its grantmaking is organized into four focus areas: the Leading Edge Fund (a fellowship program seeding next-generation progressive movement leaders with $250,000 in general support over three years plus technical assistance), Justice & Public Safety (including the Funders for Safety and Justice in California affinity group and the Californians for Safety and Justice Prop 47 campaign), Immigrant Rights & Workers' Rights (including work with the California Immigrant Youth Justice Alliance and California Domestic Workers Coalition), and Civil Rights & Civic Engagement (including the LEAD for Racial Justice Initiative launched in May 2024 with the California Black Freedom Fund).

The foundation generates no commercial revenue; its economic engine is an endowment of $54.2 million that funds grantmaking and operations, having distributed nearly $90 million across close to 3,000 grants over its 89-year history. Its go-to-market is direct, relationship-driven grantmaking to California-based nonprofits, with deliberate upstream role of seeding new organizations and downstream intermediation to larger funders such as Ford Foundation, Open Society Foundations, The California Endowment, and The California Wellness Foundation. The foundation has been co-founder of multiple funder collaboratives, including the California Civic Participation Funders Collaborative (2010) and Funders for Safety and Justice in California (2011), and offers a community conference space in its San Francisco headquarters as a non-grant resource.

Rosenberg is governed by a Board of Directors chaired by Benjamin Todd Jealous, with Lateefah Simon as Vice Chair and Secretary, and is led day-to-day by President Timothy P. Silard (since October 2008). Programmatic leadership is provided by Chief Program Officer Kendra Fox-Davis, Senior Program Officer Christina "Krea" Gomez, and Senior Fellow Michael Tubbs. There are no subsidiaries, no parent entity, no acquisitions or exits, and no AI/technology product surface; the entity's differentiation rests on brand longevity, curatorial role in identifying early movements, and structural embeddedness in California's progressive funder ecosystem.

Name

Rosenberg Foundation

Legal name

Rosenberg Foundation

Website

https://rosenbergfound.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1935

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Rosenberg Foundation is a 1935 San Francisco-based private foundation that funds visionary California-based advocates and organizations on the leading edge of racial and economic justice.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Philanthropic Grantmaking

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Social Justice & Human Rights Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAN)

Keywords

• Progressive philanthropy
• Grantmaking programs
• Racial justice funding
• Civic engagement grants
• Movement building support

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

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, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Endowment Distribution: As a private foundation, Rosenberg Foundation generates revenue through its endowment investments and distributes grants to support progressive causes in California. The foundation has assets totaling $54.2 million and has provided nearly 3,000 grants totaling nearly $90 million over its 80+ year history.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Rosenberg Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation that provides grants, capacity-building support, and technical assistance to nonprofit organizations and advocates in California working on racial and economic justice. Its offerings include the Leading Edge Fund for emerging movement leaders and core grantmaking programs focused on justice and public safety, immigrant rights and workers' rights, and civil rights and civic engagement.

Product overview

Rosenberg Foundation is a California-based philanthropic organization established in 1935 that operates primarily as a grantmaking foundation rather than a technology product company. Its offerings consist of the Leading Edge Fund (a fellowship program providing $250,000 over three years to progressive movement leaders), core grantmaking programs focused on justice and public safety, immigrant and workers' rights, and civil rights and civic engagement, and a community meeting space resource. The foundation does not offer technology products or services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Leading Edge Fund A fellowship-style grantmaking fund that seeds, incubates, and accelerates bold ideas from the next generation of progressive movement leaders in California. Fellows receive $250,000 in general support over a three-year period plus technical assistance in program development, fundraising, strategic communications, coaching, and trainings.
• Core Grantmaking Programs The foundation's main grantmaking portfolio covering Justice & Public Safety, Immigrant Rights & Workers' Rights, and Civil Rights & Civic Engagement. Supports regional, statewide, and national organizers and advocates advancing racial and economic justice in California.
• Community Meeting Space The foundation's San Francisco conference room offered as a free resource for grantees and the wider community, seating up to 16 at the conference table and up to 22 total, to support collaboration and community-driven initiatives.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly $90 million distributed across nearly 3,000 grants over 80+ years
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• California Black Freedom FundcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 May 2024Jointly launched the Legal Education, Advocacy, and Defense (LEAD) for Racial Justice Initiative. LEAD provides legal education, resources, and tools to nonprofits and foundations to navigate the legal landscape after the Supreme Court's anti-affirmative action ruling.
• Hellman FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Hellman Foundation to co-launch the Leading Edge Fund, a $2 million fund created to seed, incubate and accelerate bold ideas from next generation progressive movement leaders in California.
• California Civic Participation Funders CollaborativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding member of collaborative launched in 2010 to increase civic participation among underrepresented populations, particularly communities of color and low-income communities. Led by Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund.
• Funders for Safety and Justice in CaliforniacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAffinity group focused on criminal justice reform that Rosenberg helped create in 2011, including major funders like Open Society Foundations, Ford Foundation, The California Endowment, The California Wellness Foundation, and Sierra Health Foundation.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Hellman Foundation: San Francisco-based private foundation focused on progressive causes in California. Direct co-funder of Rosenberg's Leading Edge Fund and operates in adjacent criminal justice, immigrant rights, and education grantmaking spaces with comparable asset scale.
• Akonadi Foundation: Oakland-based foundation advancing racial justice in California, directly supporting the Leading Edge Fund. Highly comparable mission, geography, and grantee ecosystem to Rosenberg.
• The California Endowment: Large California-focused private foundation supporting health, justice, and immigrant rights — co-funder of Funders for Safety and Justice in California alongside Rosenberg and partner in the Leading Edge Fund.
• Meadow Fund: California-focused progressive philanthropy supporting immigrant rights, criminal justice reform, and movement building. Active partner in the Leading Edge Fund and overlapping grantee ecosystem with Rosenberg.
• Sierra Health Foundation: Sacramento-based foundation supporting health equity and criminal justice reform; member of Funders for Safety and Justice in California alongside Rosenberg.
• The California Wellness Foundation: California-focused private foundation funding health equity, criminal justice, and immigrant rights. Member of Funders for Safety and Justice in California alongside Rosenberg and partner in the Leading Edge Fund.
• San Francisco Foundation: Bay Area community foundation originally launched by the Rosenberg Foundation in the 1940s; comparable geography, progressive mission, and grantmaking orientation across racial equity, immigrant rights, and civic engagement.
• Unbound Philanthropy: Private foundation focused on immigration policy and rights; co-funds California Immigrant Youth Justice Alliance with Rosenberg. Shares focus area and California grantmaking footprint.
• Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund: San Francisco Bay Area private foundation with shared focus on immigration, civic participation, and LGBT equality. Co-leads the California Civic Participation Funders Collaborative of which Rosenberg is a founding member.

Regional players

• Blue Shield of California Foundation: California-focused foundation funding health equity, domestic violence prevention, and community resilience; shares California geographic restriction and overlap with Rosenberg's justice and civic engagement grantees.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/rosenbergfound
• Facebookfacebook.com/Rosenbergfound
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-rosenberg-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Rosenberg Foundation