The Pinkerton Foundation

What The Pinkerton Foundation does

The Pinkerton Foundation is a private, independent grantmaking foundation established in 1966 by Robert Allan Pinkerton, the last family head of Pinkerton's, Inc. (the historical detective/security firm, with which the foundation has no corporate ties). Headquartered in New York City and led since 2010 by President Rick Smith (former CEO of Newsweek), the Foundation's mission is to improve the lives of young people in low-income neighborhoods throughout New York City by helping them develop the skills, self-confidence, and values to reach their full potential. Grantmaking is concentrated in four program areas: After-School and Summer Learning, Career Readiness, Education, and Youth and Family Justice, with additional focus on STEM access and racial equity.

The Foundation deploys capital through a portfolio of named programs and partnerships rather than a single platform. Anchor initiatives include the Pinkerton Fellows Program (a fifteen-month paid fellowship with John Jay College placing students at youth-justice organizations), the Pinkerton Science Scholars Program (authentic research mentoring for disadvantaged high school students, now delivered through 17 partner institutions including Rockefeller University, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and CUNY/Columbia research institutes), the STEM Educators Academy (with ExpandED Schools, NY Hall of Science, Intrepid Museum, and Institute of Play), Taking Root: Strengthening STEM (with PASE), the South Jamaica Reads literacy program (South Jamaica, Queens and East New York, Brooklyn), and the Summer College and Career Intensive. The Pinkerton Papers publication series provides thought leadership on job quality, work-based learning, STEM education, and youth justice, and the Pinkerton Advanced Leadership Network (PALN) supports BIPOC nonprofit leaders under the 2020 Racial Equity Initiative.

Financially, the Foundation generates revenue from its endowment and distributes approximately $20 million annually to roughly 300 grantees — exceeding the IRS 5% minimum distribution requirement. It is not venture-backed, has no parent company, and operates with independent board governance. Its go-to-market is direct grantmaking to community-based nonprofits in New York City, supported by thought-leadership publishing and convening roles in coalitions such as the NYC STEM Education Network (~30 STEM providers).

Name

The Pinkerton Foundation

Legal name

The Pinkerton Foundation

Website

https://thepinkertonfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1966

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Pinkerton Foundation is a private, independent New York City grantmaking foundation (est. 1966) that distributes roughly $20 million annually to about 300 nonprofits supporting disadvantaged youth across after-school learning, career readiness, education, and youth and family justice.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Philanthropic Foundation / Youth Development Grantmaking

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Other Grantmaking and Giving Services (813219)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

Keywords

• Youth development grants
• Private grantmaking foundation
• Nonprofit philanthropy NYC
• Community program funding
• Education grantmaking

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

Others, Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Foundation Endowment and Grantmaking: As a private foundation established in 1966 by Robert Allan Pinkerton, the Foundation generates revenue through its endowment investments. The foundation makes grants to community-based organizations supporting youth development, with annual distributions exceeding its 5% minimum requirement.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Pinkerton Foundation is a private grantmaking foundation that provides funding to community-based nonprofit programs serving children, youth, and families in economically disadvantaged areas of New York City. It supports approximately 300 grantees annually across four program areas — After-School and Summer Learning, Career Readiness, Education, and Youth and Family Justice — and also co-develops named initiatives such as the Pinkerton Fellows Program, Pinkerton Science Scholars Program, Pinkerton Advanced Leadership Network (PALN), and South Jamaica Reads.

Product overview

The Pinkerton Foundation is an independent grantmaking organization (established 1966) that supports community-based programs for children, youth and families in economically disadvantaged areas in New York City. Rather than a unified technology product, the Foundation offers a portfolio of programmatic initiatives across four main areas: After-School and Summer Learning, Career Readiness, Education, and Youth and Family Justice. Key named programs include the Pinkerton Fellows Program (fifteen-month paid fellowship with John Jay College), Pinkerton Science Scholars Program (STEM research mentoring), Pinkerton Advanced Leadership Network/PALN (BIPOC leadership development), and South Jamaica Reads (literacy program). The Foundation also produces the Pinkerton Papers, a series of research publications on workforce development, STEM education, and youth justice.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Pinkerton Fellows Program: A fifteen-month paid fellowship program developed with John Jay College of Criminal Justice in 2012 for students serving at youth justice organizations.
• Pinkerton Science Scholars
• Pinkerton Advanced Leadership Network (PALN)
• Pinkerton Senior Leadership Network (PSLN)
• Senior Leaders Network (SLN)

Products and services

• After-School and Summer Learning Programs Foundation grantmaking program area that funds community-based direct-service programs combining engaging activities, mentoring by caring adults, and academic training for youth in low-income NYC neighborhoods. Featured grantee: The National Dance Institute, which introduces young people to art and culture through dance.
• Career Readiness Programs Foundation grantmaking program area funding employment training, career internship, and skills-certification programs that enhance job prospects for disadvantaged youth. Featured grantee: the Science Career Ladder program at the New York Hall of Science, creating a pathway for young Explainers to careers in science and technology.
• Education Programs Foundation grantmaking program area funding GED and life-skills training, college access programs, and initiatives for low-income single mothers and young people aging out of foster care. Featured grantee: LifeLink by Good Shepherd Services, helping strengthen academic skills to ease the transition to college.
• Youth and Family Justice Programs Foundation grantmaking program area funding programs for young people entangled in the justice system, offering education, employment training, and personal growth opportunities. Featured grantee: the Pinkerton Fellows Program at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
• Pinkerton Fellows Program A fifteen-month paid fellowship developed with John Jay College of Criminal Justice in 2012. Each year, fifteen to seventeen undergraduate and graduate students work two full summers, the month of January, and fourteen hours a week during the school year at alternative-to-incarceration, post-prison reentry, and other community-based youth-justice organizations.
• Pinkerton Science Scholars Program Program combining rigorous academic preparation with authentic research project work for talented high school students from disadvantaged backgrounds, with nearly 1,000 students having completed the classroom, lab, and presentation requirements to be designated Pinkerton Science Scholars.
• Pinkerton Advanced Leadership Network (PALN) Network bringing together leaders of color from NYC's nonprofit youth-development community to offer responsive support, resources, and learning opportunities for BIPOC CEOs and Executive Directors; part of the foundation's Racial Equity Initiative.
• Pinkerton Senior Leadership Network (PSLN) Senior leadership network for youth development professionals operated by the foundation.
• South Jamaica Reads Program Literacy initiative fostering a culture of reading in South Jamaica, Queens, knitting together and expanding literacy services for children from birth to fifth grade. In 2015 the foundation's board voted to expand the program to East New York, Brooklyn, a similarly distressed neighborhood.
• High-Quality Workplace Internships Foundation-supported paid or academic credit-bearing workplace internships that reach 5,000 young New Yorkers from disadvantaged backgrounds each year.

Quantifiable outcome

• 5,000 young New Yorkers from disadvantaged backgrounds receive paid or academic credit internships annually
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

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 core and major.

• John Jay College of Criminal JusticecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Joint partnership to develop the Pinkerton Fellows Program, a unique fifteen-month paid fellowship for John Jay students to serve at youth justice organizations. Working two full summers, the month of January and fourteen hours a week during the school year, fifteen to seventeen students serve at alternative-to-incarceration, post-prison reentry and other community-based organizations.
• ExpandED SchoolscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Lead organization for STEM Educators Academy partnering with the New York Hall of Science, The Institute of Play and the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum. The model pairs one classroom teacher and two after-school community educators in a co-teaching team.
• Partnership for After School Education (PASE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead organization for Taking Root: Strengthening STEM program designed to dramatically expand the capacity of after-school agencies to provide STEM programming by building Master Trainers.
• American Museum of Natural HistorymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerScience Research Mentoring Program developer that Pinkerton built upon for the Pinkerton Science Scholars Program. The model combines rigorous academic preparation with work with a scientist on authentic research projects.
• Rockefeller UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of seventeen institutions offering the intensive mentoring experience for Pinkerton Science Scholars, ranging from research universities to institutes at Columbia and multiple CUNY colleges.
• Cold Spring Harbor LaboratorymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of seventeen institutions offering the intensive mentoring experience for Pinkerton Science Scholars, providing authentic research project opportunities.
• Erica Hamilton / The Memo I Never GotcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrusted expert partner engaged to design and facilitate the Pinkerton Advanced Leadership Network (PALN), a safe-space community for BIPOC leaders offering resources, networks and support. Hamilton brought experience from Goldman Sachs and programs at City Year, Prep for Prep and other nonprofits.
• NYC STEM Education Network MembersmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork of approximately 30 STEM-specific providers including STEM-rich cultural institutions, city agencies (Department of Education, DYCD), and youth-serving organizations. Includes organizations such as Code/Interactive, Girls Who Code, Museum of Mathematics, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and 50+ other institutions.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• The Overdeck Family Foundation: Family foundation funding STEM education and out-of-school-time learning, including an active co-funding partnership with Pinkerton on the NYC STEM Education Network. Comparable in mission (youth/STEM education) and overlapping grantee ecosystem, with a more concentrated focus on K-12 STEM than Pinkerton's broader youth portfolio.
• The New York Community Trust: A major NYC-focused grantmaking foundation supporting children, youth, families, education, and community development across the five boroughs. Highly comparable to Pinkerton in geographic mandate, grantmaking model, and grantee segments, though NYCT is a community foundation pooling many donors' funds versus Pinkerton's private foundation status.
• Robin Hood Foundation: One of NYC's largest anti-poverty foundations, funding programs that support low-income children, youth, and families across the five boroughs. Directly comparable to Pinkerton in mission (NYC poverty/youth), grantmaking model, and grantee ecosystem, though Robin Hood operates at significantly larger scale.
• The Booth Ferris Foundation: NYC-based private foundation supporting education, youth development, and social services in New York City, with a strong focus on capacity-building for nonprofits. Directly comparable in mandate (NYC nonprofit ecosystem), grantmaking model, and target grantee segments.
• Tiger Foundation: NYC-based private foundation focused on improving life outcomes for children and youth in low-income communities, with a strong emphasis on education, workforce, and family supports. Comparable in mission, geographic concentration in NYC, and program-area focus, with a similar endowment-driven grantmaking model.

Broad incumbents

• The Helmsley Charitable Trust: One of the largest private charitable trusts in the U.S., with major programming in education, health, and place-based initiatives including in NYC. Comparable as a major NYC grantmaking institution but operates at a far larger scale and across multiple program areas well beyond youth development.
• The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation: Large U.S. private foundation supporting the arts, environment, health, and child well-being. Comparable as a major private foundation with significant youth and education grantmaking, though its geographic reach and program breadth are substantially larger than Pinkerton's NYC-only focus.

Regional players

• The William Penn Foundation: Philadelphia-based private foundation funding children, youth, and education programs, with strong emphasis on out-of-school-time learning. Comparable in mission and program areas to Pinkerton (youth development, education, place-based giving), but operates in a different metro region.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-pinkerton-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about The Pinkerton Foundation