Altman Foundation

The Altman Foundation is a New York City-focused private foundation with a century-long history of grantmaking, $286.5 million in assets, and $172.4 million in annual income — an unusually high income-to-assets ratio indicating strong investment returns and active distribution. The foundation's mission is to enrich the quality of life in New York City through programs that advance opportunity and equity across five program areas: Education, Health, Strengthening Communities, Cultural Engagement, and Services to Not-for-Profits.

The foundation's strategic logic is relational and portfolio-based. Rather than funding a broad field, Altman cultivates a portfolio of long-term grantee relationships across its five areas, with renewal grants representing a substantial portion of annual giving. This means new entrants to the portfolio face real competition from well-established incumbent grantees, and the foundation has explicitly stated that "opportunities for new grants are limited at this time" given the volume of active and renewal proposals in the pipeline.

Critically, as of the most recent published guidelines, only the Health portfolio is accepting Letters of Inquiry from new organizations. All other program areas are effectively closed to new applicants. Organizations outside the health space should focus on relationship-building now and await future openings in Education, Cultural Engagement, Strengthening Communities, and Services to Not-for-Profits.

Within Health, the foundation is actively seeking proposals focused on: expanding out-of-hospital health, behavioral health, and social care for underserved NYC populations; strengthening the resilience of NYC safety-net health providers amid reduced federal funding; advancing whole-person and integrated care models within Medicaid and the safety net; and addressing structural barriers to care including food, housing, and social determinants of health.

Typical grant sizes run $35,000–$250,000, with a median of $50,000. Multi-year grants (typically two-year commitments) are common and represent the foundation's preference for sustained impact over episodic support.

Altman's grant history reveals several defining characteristics of its grantmaking behavior:

Strong concentration in New York City institutions. All grants on record are to NYC-based organizations, with a heavy representation of institutions serving the Bronx, Upper Manhattan, and high-need boroughs. Community-based organizations with deep roots in neighborhoods rather than citywide advocacy shops dominate the portfolio.

Multi-year grants are the norm. A majority of larger awards ($100,000+) are structured as two-year grants, signaling preference for sustained engagement. Single-year grants tend to appear at the lower end of the range ($35,000–$75,000). Organizations seeking one-time project support will find multi-year programmatic funding to be the dominant vehicle.

Anchor partnerships are favored. The foundation repeatedly funds collaborative arrangements — the New York City Workforce Development Fund (via NY Community Trust), Neighborhoods First Fund (via NY Foundation), and the NYC Green Relief and Recovery Fund (via City Parks Foundation) all represent funder collaboratives where Altman participates alongside other funders. Organizations that can position themselves as hubs for collaborative work have an advantage.

Education and health dominate in scale. The largest individual grants cluster in Education (tutoring, postsecondary advising, school-community partnerships) and Health (community health workers, vaccine access, integrated care). Cultural Engagement grants are smaller and appear more project-specific.

Grant range: $89–$250,000, median $50,000. The ceiling is firm; proposals exceeding $250,000 are not funded. Requests of $100,000–$200,000 over two years represent the sweet spot for substantive programmatic work.

The Services to Not-for-Profits track is distinctive. Altman funds sector infrastructure through NYCT and other intermediaries — a signal that it values the health of the nonprofit ecosystem as a whole, not just individual program outcomes.

The Altman Foundation occupies a specific niche in the dense New York City foundation landscape as a mid-scale, multi-sector, relationship-driven community funder:

Versus New York Community Trust (~$3B): NYCT is an intermediary/DAF more than a direct funder; Altman is more programmatically engaged and maintains defined program staff with sector expertise. Altman grants appear alongside NYCT grants in the same portfolio, often as co-funders rather than competitors.

Versus Robin Hood Foundation (~$250M in grants/year): Robin Hood focuses specifically on poverty and has a more transactional, metrics-driven grantmaking model. Altman is more relationship-driven and sector-pluralist. Organizations working at the intersection of health and poverty may be appealing to both, but the application approaches are quite different — Robin Hood requires rigorous cost-effectiveness framing, while Altman values narrative relationship-building.

Versus Ira W. DeCamp Foundation (health focus, NYC): DeCamp is a pure health funder with no portfolio breadth. Altman's health grantmaking is smaller relative to its total portfolio but more strategically integrated with education and housing/social determinants work.

Versus New York Foundation (~$90M assets): NYF is smaller and more focused on grassroots organizing. Altman is larger and favors institutionally credible direct service providers rather than organizing-focused groups. The two foundations appear in complementary rather than competing positions in many NYC networks.

For applicants: Organizations funded by Robin Hood, NYCT, DeCamp, or the United Hospital Fund for similar NYC health work are strong fits for Altman's Health portfolio. Demonstrating alignment with existing Altman grantees (without duplicating their work) is a credible positioning strategy.

As of early 2026, the Altman Foundation is navigating a constrained new-grantmaking environment while maintaining its Health portfolio as the primary entry point for new organizations:

Health LOIs currently accepted. The foundation's website explicitly states that only Health portfolio LOIs are being processed from new organizations. The specific priorities articulated for this period center on protecting NYC safety-net health infrastructure from federal funding reductions — a highly timely focus given current federal policy uncertainty.

Reduced federal funding as organizing theme. The foundation's 2026 Health priorities specifically call out projects that "strengthen and sustain the resilience and capacity of NYC safety net health, behavioral health, and social service providers in an era of reduced federal funding." This is a direct response to the current policy environment and represents a window for organizations experiencing or anticipating federal funding cuts to make a compelling case.

Impact investing track. Altman has an impact investing program alongside its grantmaking, suggesting interest in financial sustainability models for funded organizations. Nonprofits with earned income components or social enterprise elements may find an additional engagement pathway.

Century milestone context. The foundation recently passed its 100-year anniversary ("100 Years of Giving" appears prominently on the website), suggesting a period of reflection on legacy and strategy. New programs or priority announcements may follow.

Current portfolio incumbents limit new entry. The foundation's honest communication about a limited pipeline for new grants means organizations should engage now — submitting LOIs, attending foundation events if available, and building program staff relationships — to position for future portfolio openings in Education, Cultural Engagement, and Strengthening Communities when they reopen.

1. Submit an LOI for Health now — it is the only open door. The foundation has stated unambiguously that only Health LOIs are being accepted from new organizations at this time. If your work fits — especially if it addresses safety-net resilience, integrated care, whole-person health, or social determinants — submit promptly.

2. Lead with federal funding threat framing. The foundation's 2026 Health priorities are explicitly organized around protecting NYC safety-net providers from reduced federal funding. Open your LOI with a direct, specific description of how federal policy changes affect your organization's capacity and the populations you serve. Reviewers are primed for this narrative.

3. Complete the eligibility questionnaire before writing the LOI. The foundation's website directs prospective applicants to complete an online questionnaire before submitting a Letter of Inquiry. Skipping this step disqualifies the LOI before it is read.

4. Propose multi-year work. Altman's portfolio skews toward two-year grant commitments. Single-year project proposals signal transactional intent and may reduce competitiveness. Frame your request as a $100,000–$200,000 two-year investment with specific milestones at year one and year two.

5. Name specific Altman grantees as partners or peers. The foundation values collaborative networks. Identifying existing Altman grantees (United Way of New York City, Community Health Care Association of NYS, NYC Health + Hospitals, Fund for Public Health in New York) as partners or referencing shared collaborative structures sends a credible signal of embeddedness in the NYC health ecosystem.

6. Avoid the Education, Cultural, Strengthening Communities, and Services tracks right now. Do not waste an LOI in a closed portfolio area. Monitor the foundation's website for announcement of reopened LOI tracks; timing your approach to coincide with a new opening substantially improves your odds.