Epstein Philanthropies

Epstein Philanthropies (legally Epstein Teicher Philanthropies, EIN 13-2902852) is a small, closely-held New York family foundation, not a program-driven grantmaker soliciting proposals. It is governed by three uncompensated officers — President Jane E. Heffner, Vice President Adrienne Simpson, and Treasurer Jack Stern — operating out of One Rockefeller Plaza, Suite 1710-12. Its own database record flags giving as 'preselected only,' and independent third-party trackers (Grantable, Instrumentl) confirm the foundation accepts no unsolicited proposals.

The single most distinguishing feature is that all 257 tracked grants in the data set carry the purpose tag 'GENERAL PURPOSES' — this foundation funds unrestricted operating support, not specific projects or programs. Its grantee roster is also remarkably stable: nearly every top recipient appears three to four times across the multi-year window analyzed, indicating annual renewal to the same roughly 45-50 organizations rather than a rotating cast of new awardees. First-time applicants should read this correctly: it is fundamentally a relationship-maintenance funder, not a competitive open RFP process.

What distinguishes current grantees is clear even without a stated mission: (1) NYC arts and culture anchors (Metropolitan Opera, Metropolitan Museum of Art, MoMA, New York Public Library, Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Academy of Music); (2) Jewish communal and advocacy organizations (UJA-Federation of New York, Anti-Defamation League, American Jewish World Service, The Jewish Museum, Congregation Emanu-El); (3) national civil-liberties and human-rights groups (ACLU, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International USA, Alliance for Justice); (4) NYC direct-service and safety-net nonprofits (Food Bank For New York City, City Harvest, City Meals on Wheels, Women In Need, Safe Horizon, BronxWorks, Housing Works); and (5) medical research tied to Columbia University (Department of Ophthalmology) and the Tisch MS Research Center. A small out-of-footprint cluster in Ohio (Rural Action, Hocking College School of Health and Safety) suggests a personal trustee connection rather than a programmatic Ohio strategy.

For an organization not already in this circle, the realistic strategy is relationship-building, not cold application: warm introductions through the NYC Jewish philanthropic and civic networks this foundation's officers evidently move in, or visibility within the specific arts, human-services, or civil-liberties ecosystem it already funds.

Assets stood at $18,062,589 in FY2025, down from a decade peak of $28,168,133 in 2015 — a 36% decline. FY2025 grants paid totaled $1,800,000 across roughly 43-44 awards; this compares to $2,704,680 paid in 2021 and $2,683,400 in 2019, meaning distributions have contracted by roughly a third since 2019, tracking the shrinking asset base and its shrinking required minimum payout. FY2023's 'total_giving' figure of $3,426,102 exceeds that year's grants_paid of $1,790,000, likely reflecting non-grant program or administrative distributions layered on top of charitable grants in that filing.

Typical grant size, per the foundation's own database record: minimum $5,000, maximum $100,000, median $35,000, average $40,370 (n=54). Aggregated multi-year grantee data shows an average of $41,458 per grant across 257 total tracked grants worth $10,654,680 cumulatively. The largest recurring award is $100,000 per year to UJA-Federation of New York (four grants totaling $400,000 in the window reviewed); many long-standing recipients receive $15,000-$25,000 annually once the multi-year totals are divided by grant count.

Geographically, this is an overwhelmingly New York funder: 232 of 257 tracked grants (90%) went to New York recipients, with small satellite clusters in Ohio (17 grants, 7%), Washington DC (5 grants, 2%), and Massachusetts (3 grants, 1%).

By sector, using the top-50 grantee list (100% tagged 'GENERAL PURPOSES,' meaning no project restrictions): arts and culture institutions account for roughly 30% of top-50 dollars (Met Opera, Met Museum, MoMA, NYPL, Brooklyn Museum, BAM, Jewish Museum, WNET/WNYC); Jewish communal organizations and human-rights/civil-liberties groups together account for roughly 25% (UJA-Federation, ADL, American Jewish World Service, ACLU, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Alliance for Justice); human and social services make up roughly 30% (Food Bank For NYC, City Harvest, City Meals on Wheels, Women In Need, Safe Horizon, BronxWorks, Housing Works, Graham Windham); and health/medical research makes up the remainder (Columbia Ophthalmology, Tisch MS Research Center, Visiting Nurse Services of New York). There is no evidence of a strategic pivot — the uniform 'GENERAL PURPOSES' tag across all 257 grants signals unrestricted renewal giving to an established list rather than shifting programmatic priorities.

Epstein Philanthropies sits at the small end of a recognizable cohort of legacy New York family foundations that give general-purpose operating support on an invitation-only basis. Three comparably structured peers, verified via their own 990 data: the Lucius N. Littauer Foundation (Jewish studies, education, and human-knowledge causes; confirmed to accept no unsolicited proposals), the Louis and Anne Abrons Foundation (arts, education, and human services around New York City), and the Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels Foundation (performing arts and healthy aging, with a more structured letter-of-inquiry process).

Epstein Philanthropies is the smallest of this peer set by both asset base and annual giving — roughly one-eighth the size of Abrons and Samuels, and well under half the size of Littauer — yet it shares the identical closed-door, invitation-only posture common to this cohort. None of these four foundations run an open competitive RFP; all rely on trustee relationships and grantee continuity. For an outside applicant, the practical implication is the same across this entire peer group: approach through a third-party introduction (a shared board member, honoree, or gala connection), not a direct cold application.

No foundation-specific press coverage, leadership changes, or new program announcements were found for Epstein Philanthropies in 2025-2026 beyond its routine IRS Form 990-PF filing. The most recent filing (financial data last updated April 22, 2026) shows $1,800,000 in grants paid in fiscal year 2025, continuing the gradual decline from $2,704,680 in 2021. Leadership has remained unchanged across the filing history reviewed — Jane E. Heffner (President), Adrienne Simpson (Vice President), and Jack Stern (Treasurer), all serving without compensation.

An important disambiguation for grant seekers researching this funder: Epstein Teicher Philanthropies (EIN 13-2902852, contact 'A Seth Teicher') is a legally and factually distinct organization from Jeffrey Epstein and the unrelated 'Jeffrey Epstein VI Foundation.' Web search results for 'Epstein Philanthropies' news in 2025-2026 are dominated by unrelated coverage — the Gates Foundation's external review of its past ties to Jeffrey Epstein, and Warren Buffett's mid-2026 decision to delay his annual gift to the Gates Foundation pending that review. None of this involves Epstein Teicher Philanthropies, its officers, or its grantees, and grant seekers should be careful not to conflate the two names in outreach or research.

Absent notable news, the most significant recent development is structural: total assets have fallen to $18.06 million, the lowest point across the decade of filings reviewed, down from a $28.2 million peak in 2015 — consistent with continued gradual spend-down rather than an active growth or rebuilding phase.

This foundation does not solicit or accept unsolicited proposals. Its own database record shows no application form URL, no opportunities URL, no posted deadline, and no public contact email; independent trackers (Grantable, Instrumentl, Cause IQ) each separately confirm a 'preselected recipient' model. Because all 257 tracked grants carry the purpose tag 'GENERAL PURPOSES,' this funder is not evaluating project budgets, logic models, or program proposals — it is renewing relationships with organizations its three officers already trust. A cold pitch built around a specific program is likely to mismatch how this funder actually decides.

The realistic path in is a warm introduction. Check whether your organization's board, gala committee, or major-donor circle overlaps with UJA-Federation of New York, the Anti-Defamation League, American Jewish World Service, or the NYC arts anchor institutions (Metropolitan Opera, Metropolitan Museum of Art, MoMA, Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Academy of Music) already on the grantee list — these appear to be the professional and philanthropic circles the foundation's officers move in.

On timing: as a 990-PF filer with roughly $1.3 million in required annual minimum distribution against an $18 million corpus, decisions appear to follow an internal annual cycle tied to the foundation's fiscal year rather than a public RFP calendar. Do not expect a posted deadline or notification date.

If your organization is New York-based and works in one of the five clusters this foundation actually funds — Jewish communal/advocacy work, civil liberties or human rights, arts and culture anchor institutions, direct human/social services, or Columbia-affiliated medical research — a brief, low-pressure letter of introduction addressed to the foundation c/o A Seth Teicher, One Rockefeller Plaza, Suite 1710-12, New York, NY 10020, (212) 586-0541, is more appropriate than a full proposal, though it should be treated as a long shot given the closed pattern evident across a decade of filings. Avoid the common mistake of submitting through generic aggregator inquiry forms (Candid/GuideStar-style portals) — none of the profiles reviewed list a working application channel for this funder. If your organization has any existing tie to the foundation's small Ohio relationship (Rural Action, Hocking College), that connection is worth surfacing explicitly, since it stands out in an otherwise 90%-New-York portfolio and likely reflects a personal trustee relationship.