Triad Foundation
OVERVIEW: The Triad Foundation supports education, conservative policy development, conservation and public health.
IP TAKE: The Triad Foundation’s largest area of giving is higher education, and many of its grants support the alma maters of its founder, Roy H. Park, Jr., who graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Cornell University. The foundation has also given to several conservative think tanks, which progressive grantseekers should note. North Carolina, Western New York, and Florida serve as regions of giving.
This is not an accessible or transparent funder by design. It does not maintain a website or accept grant proposals. It’s not responsive or approachable, but an address and phone number are provided below.
PROFILE: The Ithaca, New York-based Triad Foundation was established in 2002 by Roy H. Park, Jr. and his wife, Tetlow. Park graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and earned an MBA from Cornell University in 1963. He then joined his father’s media company, Park Communications, which owned radio and television stations and over 100 news publications until it was sold in the 1990s for $710 million. The Triad Foundation, which does not maintain a website, supports education, civic engagement and democracy, marine conservation and public health. It is worth noting that this funder tends to support conservative causes and organizations.
Grants for Higher Education
Higher education is the Triad Foundation’s largest area of giving. Roy H. Park, Jr.’s alma maters, the University of North Carolina and Cornell, receive ongoing support. At the University of North Carolina’s Hussman School of Journalism and Media, the foundation funds the Roy H. Park Fellowship Program, and at Cornell, the foundation supports the Roy H. Park Leadership Fellowships at the Johnson Graduate School of Management. Other recent higher education grantees include Furman University, Prager University, Ashland University, East Carolina University and Elon University.
Grants for K-12 Education
The Triad Foundation does not outline specific goals or interests for its K-12 education funding, but it supports a selection of private schools, organizations involved in the school reform movement and out-of-school learning opportunities for primary and secondary students. An area of geographic priority appears to be Charlotte, North Carolina, where the foundation has supported the Charlotte Country Day School, a local chapter of Communities in Schools and Classroom Central, which distributes free school supplies to children in need. The foundation has also made grants to the Foundation for Excellence in Education, an organization that promotes educational technology, the charter school movement and tax vouchers for families whose children attend private schools. Multiple chapters of the Big Brothers and Big Sisters, YMCA and Boy Scouts organizations have also received funding for their out-of-school learning programs.
Grants for Civic Engagement and Democracy
The Triad Foundation’s grants for civic engagement and democracy mainly support think tanks that conduct research and policy development projects for conservative causes. Recent grants have gone to the American Enterprise Research Institute, the Foundation for Government Accountability and the Public Interest Legal Foundation, which is known for its lawsuits against state and local governments for the removal of voters from election rolls.
Grants for Environmental Conservation and Justice
The Triad Foundation has provided ongoing support to the Boyce Thompson Institute at Cornell University, which conducts research on the use of plants to protect the environment. Other past environmental grantees include the Sea to Shore Alliance, which pursues research and educational outreach programs on the preservation of aquatic life, and the Cornell Botanic Gardens, which runs conservation and education programs on sustainable landscaping.
Grants for Public Health
Public health is a smaller area of giving for the funder, but according to taxes, the foundation demonstrates a commitment to cancer and hospital care. Grantees include the Cancer Resource Center of the Finger Lakes, Tampa’s H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute Foundation, Ithaca’s Cayuga Medical Center and the Novant Health Foundation’s Presbyterian Medical Center in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Important Grant Details:
The Triad Foundation makes over $10 million a year in grants, ranging in amount from a few thousand to about $1 million. The foundation’s average grant size is about $25,000. Higher education is its largest giving area, with most grants supporting programs at Park’s alma maters, the University of North Carolina and Cornell University. Many of Triad’s other grantees are involved with research and policy development to support conservative causes. For additional information about past grantmaking, see the foundation’s recent tax filings.
This funder maintains a low profile. It does not have a website and does not appear to unsolicited accept applications for funding. An address and phone number are provided below.
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CONTACT:
The Triad Foundation
P.O. Box 4440
Ithaca, NY 14852-4440
(607) 257-5203