Leon Lowenstein Foundation
OVERVIEW: The Leon Lowenstein Foundation has supported education through a variety of initiatives including research, science education, and the creation of widely accessible digital materials.
IP TAKE: The Leon Lowenstein Foundation supports K-12 education through a variety of large-scale, university-based initiatives. Its grantees include research institutes, science education programs and the creation of digitally accessible course materials. While Lowenstein makes grants across the country, the majority of them go to either New York or California.
This funder is neither transparent nor accessible, as it doesn’t accept unsolicited applications. Its grantees list is password protected and it requests that new grantseekers do not try to reach out. Additionally, it outlines its funding priorities only in the broadest terms and does not give any indication of what it looks for in its grantees. This foundation is a tough nut to crack.
PROFILE: The Leon Lowenstein Foundation was founded in 1941 by Leon Lowenstein, a former chairman of M. Lowenstein & Sons, a major American textile company in the 20th century. Based in New Haven, Connecticut, the foundation aims to “support organizations that provide transformational solutions to some of our most challenging issues in order to leave the world a better place for future generations.” Its funding initiatives include education, health and the environment.
Grants for K-12 Education
The Leon Lowenstein Foundation does not articulate specific grantmaking priorities for its education funding. It has supported Openstax, a nonprofit initiative at Rice University that creates affordable digital education materials, and the Young Scientist Program at Washington University in St. Louis, which seeks to expose minority and disadvantaged children to experimental science. The foundation also supports the Washington D.C. based Strategic Education Research Partnership, a multi-university collaborative venture that aims to solve problems of curriculum, instruction and assessment through research and intervention in public school districts across the U.S.
Grants for Environment, and Climate Change and Clean Energy
While K-12 education appears to be the primary focus of this funder, it does modestly support other initiatives, including environment and issues related to climate change. Previous grantees in this area include Solar United Neighbors, SmartPower, GRID Alternatives San Diego, Save the Bay, and Conservation International Foundation.
Important Grant Details:
Grants vary in size from just a few thousand to almost a million. The most common amount is $25,000. The Leon Lowenstein Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals or requests for funding. General inquiries may be made through the contact page on its website.
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