Lear Family Foundation
OVERVIEW: The Lear Family Foundation maintains a cadre of grantees that receive funding year after year. It gives to large, national organizations in the areas of civic engagement, conservation and education, but its arts and culture funding tends to be somewhat mixed, with smaller theaters and film festivals receiving some support.
IP TAKE: This funder is not accessible or approachable. The Lear Family Foundation is smaller and lacks a large staff to process letters of inquiry or unsolicited applications. However, it lacks transparency, which restricts information about its strategies and investments. This funder likes long-term relationships; however, that makes for a more competitive grant space here. Contact them to learn more about how they choose what to fund and general questions.
PROFILE: The Lear Family Foundation was established in 1997 by the television writer and producer Norman Lear and his wife, Lyn. The late Norman Lear began his television writing career in 1950 when he and his writing partner were signed to write for The Ford Star Revue, starring Jack Haley. Lear teamed with director Bud Yorkin to form Tandem Productions. Together, they produced several feature films, with Lear taking on roles as executive producer, writer and director. In 1967, he was nominated for an Oscar for his script for Divorce American Style. Norman Lear’s credits include writing and producing 70s hit shows including All in the Family, Maude, Sanford and Son, Good Times and the Jeffersons. Lear died in December 2023.
This Beverly Hills-based funder supports a broad range of organizations in the areas of civic engagement and democracy, environmental conservation, education, the arts and public health. This foundation maintains a simple webpage as part of Norman Lear’s personal site, limiting information about its grantmaking practices.
Grants for Civic Engagement and Democracy
The Lear Family Foundation does not outline specific goals for its grants in this area, but recent tax filings suggest a strong interest in promoting civic engagement and protecting constitutional rights. The foundation provides ongoing support to People for the American Way, the Norman Lear-founded organization that aims to “stop hate and defend democracy,” as well as support for the Business Enterprise Trust, which “spotlighted exemplary social innovations in American business.”
Other past grantees in this space include the American Civil Liberties Union, Indivisible, When We All Vote, the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy and the Institute for America’s Future, a progressive think tank that develops public awareness and engagement campaigns for democracy and equity for all Americans.
Grants for Higher Education
The Lear Family Foundation does not make many grants for higher education; a select few grantees have received ongoing support over the past several years.
Grantees include the Norman Lear Center at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School Communications, Boston’s Emerson College, the University of California at Los Angeles and the Martin Marty Center for the Advanced Study of Religion at the University of Chicago.
Grants for Environmental Conservation
Lear’s environmental grants tend to support large, U.S.-based organizations with global operations and interest. Lear co-founded the Environmental Media Center, which supports environmental responsibility in the entertainment industry.
Past grantees include the Rainforest Alliance, the Alliance for Climate Change Protection, the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation and the Global Green U.S.A. The Lear Family Foundation’s grantmaking has also supported EMA, as well as organizations like Oceana, Heal the Bay, Rainforest Alliance, Global Green USA, NRDC, Conservation International, and 350.org, an “international effort to raise awareness of the need to decrease carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere to 350 parts per million.” At least $1.3 million went to Peconic Land Trust in Eastern Long Island last decade.
Grants for Film
The Lear Family Foundation has increased its grantmaking for film over the past several years, although the foundation has not named specific goals or priorities for its grantmaking in this area. Recent grants have gone to the Utah Film Center, the Sundance Institute, Brave New Films and Women Make Movies.
Grants for Theater
The Lear Family Foundation has demonstrated a strong interest in theater over the past several years, supporting large and small theater companies and festivals. Recent grants have gone to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Los Angeles’s Geffen Playhouse, the Ojai Playwrights Conference, the Inkwell Theater and East-West Players, an Asian American theater group based in Los Angeles.
Grants for Arts and Culture
In addition to its grants for film and theater, the Lear Family Foundation supports a few organizations in visual arts, music and dance each year. In visual arts, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art has received ongoing support. Music grantees include the Pasadena-based Muse-Ique, which produces concerts and outreach programs in a variety of musical styles and the Israel Philharmonic. The foundation has also supported Ballet Hispanico, which is based in New York City.
Grants for Public Health
Health is one of Lear’s smaller areas of grantmaking. Most of the foundation’s health grants have supported organizations in Los Angeles. Past grantees include City of Hope, a nationally known cancer treatment center in California; Planned Parenthood of Los Angeles; and the Rape Foundation, which provides treatment for victims at the Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center.
Important Grant Details:
This foundation makes about $2 million in grants a year. Its average grant size is about $10,000, but grants are occasionally made in amounts of up to $1 million.
About half of its grants stay in the state of California, and many grantees receive multi-year support.
For additional information about past grantees, see the foundation’s web page or its past tax filings.
The Lear Family Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals or provide a clear avenue for getting in touch. The foundation’s phone number is 310-385-4087, and a mailing address is provided below. Links to Norman Lear’s official social media handles are linked to the foundation’s webpage.
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CONTACT:
The Lear Family Foundation
10202 W Wash Blvd, Morita No 8405
Culver City, CA 90232
(310) 385-4087