Kislak Family Foundation Inc.

The Kislak Family Foundation operates as a quintessential invitation-only family foundation — high-asset, selective, relationship-driven, and built around a single patriarch's philanthropic legacy. Founded in 1992 by Miami Lakes real estate entrepreneur Jay I. Kislak, the foundation honors his legacy across four explicit program areas: education, arts and humanities, animal welfare, and environmental preservation. Since Jay's death in October 2018 at age 96, the foundation has deployed dramatically expanded capital — assets grew from $22M in 2014 to $177.2M by 2024, driven by estate contributions of $38.1M in 2019 and $66.8M in 2020.

The foundation favors deep, multi-year institutional relationships over transactional grantmaking. The clearest evidence is the Kislak Real Estate Institute at Monmouth University, established with foundation support in 2006 and still receiving fresh capital nearly two decades later — most recently a $2.125M pledge in April 2024. Similarly, the 2022 $10M gift to the Library of Congress almost certainly followed years of prior engagement, building on Jay Kislak's historical donation of his personal Americana and Judaica collection to that institution. This is a funder that makes long bets on organizations it knows intimately.

Two distinct funding tiers operate in practice. Florida-based nonprofits — particularly Miami-Dade organizations in education and animal welfare — receive grants in the $200,000–$500,000 range. National cultural institutions such as libraries, museums, and universities access larger $1M–$10M+ gifts. First-time applicants should calibrate expectations accordingly: an initial relationship rarely yields a six-figure grant immediately.

Professional governance is a defining feature. CEO Thomas Bartelmo is compensated $624,000–$843,000 annually — among the highest for a foundation of this asset size — indicating a well-resourced professional staff with formal vetting processes. The Kislak family trustees, President Paula A. Kislak and Vice President Philip T. Kislak, appear to set strategic direction while Bartelmo screens incoming inquiries. For first-time prospects, the path starts with a carefully crafted inquiry email to Info@KislakFamilyFoundation.org: 2-3 tight paragraphs framing mission alignment with the foundation's four focus areas, anchored in the language of 'leadership and innovation.' No attachments, no full proposals at this stage.

The Kislak Family Foundation has undergone one of the more dramatic funding scale transformations in Florida philanthropy over the past decade. Total giving grew from $894,992 in 2012 to $13,883,592 in 2023 — a 15-fold increase in eleven years. Grants paid (cash disbursed directly to grantees) followed the same arc: $805,297 in 2012 to $11,636,125 in 2023.

The inflection point was 2019–2020, when the foundation received $38.1M in contributions in 2019 and $66.8M in 2020 — almost certainly estate transfers following Jay Kislak's death in October 2018. These infusions tripled the asset base from $61.4M in 2019 to $136.8M in 2020, reaching $177.2M by 2024.

Annual giving trajectory: - 2023: $13.88M total giving, $11.64M grants paid - 2022: $12.76M total giving, $9.90M grants paid - 2021: $10.27M total giving, $6.03M grants paid - 2020: $7.84M total giving, $6.16M grants paid - 2019: $4.35M total giving, $3.63M grants paid - 2015: $1.60M total giving, $1.45M grants paid - 2012: $894K total giving, $805K grants paid

The consistent gap between total giving and grants paid ($1–3M annually) reflects officer compensation and operating costs classified as charitable disbursements under IRS Form 990-PF rules. Officer compensation alone reached $1.15M in 2023, primarily Thomas Bartelmo's salary.

From publicly documented grants, the known range spans $200,000 (Jack & Jill Center, 2024) to $10,000,000 (Library of Congress, 2022). The 990-PF filings consolidate individual grantees into two aggregate schedule entries — $24.5M across 4 grants and $19.8M across 2 grants — suggesting a top-heavy structure with a handful of very large institutional gifts alongside smaller local grants. The calculated per-entry average of $7.38M reflects this concentration. In practice, the median operational grant to Florida nonprofits is likely closer to $250,000–$500,000, while peak institutional gifts reach $2M–$10M.

Program area allocation (estimated from documented grants): arts and humanities likely absorbs 40–50% of total dollars, education 30–40%, and animal welfare plus environmental preservation together account for 15–25%. Jewish cultural organizations may receive a modest portion of giving, consistent with the Kislak family heritage, though no public breakdown is available.

The Kislak Family Foundation occupies a mid-tier among Florida's major private foundations — substantial by asset size but operating with the selectivity and relationship-dependence typical of family foundations rather than the open-competition model of larger institutional funders.

Kislak's invitation-only model aligns it closest to the Rales Foundation — both are family foundations with selective access and Jewish philanthropic roots, operating primarily in South Florida. Unlike Edyth Bush and Peacock, which accept letters of inquiry from qualified nonprofits, Kislak requires proactive relationship cultivation before any formal submission. The most striking contrast is with Knight Foundation: Kislak commands a fraction of Knight's assets but makes gifts of comparable scale ($10M Library of Congress vs. Knight's largest arts grants), suggesting a more concentrated, personally connected grantmaking approach. For organizations deciding where to invest relationship-building time, Kislak offers meaningful access for Florida nonprofits and national cultural institutions — but demands patience and connection that open-application funders do not.

The foundation's confirmed news page showed active coverage through early 2025. The most recent items (as of March 2025) include: the Kislak Real Estate Institute at Monmouth University presenting its 2025 Leadership Excellence Award to the cofounders of Onyx, a real estate technology company; and the March 21, 2025 opening of a new permanent exhibition at the Intrepid Museum in New York, featuring more than 50 never-before-seen artifacts, crew member oral histories, and a World War II Corsair on display.

In 2024, two significant grants were confirmed: a $200,000 award to the Jack & Jill Center, Miami's longest-running nonprofit childcare provider, for early childhood education programming; and a $2.125 million pledge to Monmouth University announced April 3, 2024, covering real estate scholarships ($1M), the Academic Challenge competition ($125K), and construction of the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music ($1M).

In 2023, the foundation awarded $250,000 to the South Florida Wildlife Center for wildlife rescue programs — the most recent documented expression of the foundation's animal welfare priority.

The most consequential recent grant remains the 2022 $10 million donation to the Library of Congress to establish a gallery dedicated to early Americas history, with emphasis on Indigenous peoples and cultures. This gift builds directly on Jay I. Kislak's prior donation of his personal collection of rare maps, manuscripts, and Americana to the Library — a foundational institutional relationship spanning decades. No leadership changes or major personnel shifts have been announced publicly. Thomas Bartelmo has served as CEO continuously, with compensation rising from $461K to $843K over the filing years reviewed, indicating stable executive leadership.

The central reality of pursuing Kislak Family Foundation funding is that you cannot apply — you must be invited. The foundation website states explicitly that grant proposals are accepted by invitation only, and no application portal, downloadable forms, or open RFP cycles exist. Every viable path to funding begins with relationship.

The appropriate first step is a brief inquiry email to Info@KislakFamilyFoundation.org. Limit it to 2-3 paragraphs and under 400 words total. Paragraph one: who your organization is and its primary mission, in two sentences. Paragraph two: an explicit, specific connection to one of the four stated focus areas — education, arts and humanities, animal welfare, or environmental preservation — using the foundation's own framing of 'leadership and innovation.' Paragraph three: the specific program or project seeking support, a concrete dollar request, and one measurable outcome. Do not attach documents at this stage.

Alignment language matters more than organization size. The foundation funds established institutions demonstrating leadership within their fields, not emerging advocacy organizations. If your work touches American history, Latin American or Indigenous cultural heritage, Judaica, or real estate education, name it explicitly — these areas resonate with the Kislak family's decades-long personal collecting and philanthropic identity.

Geographic self-assessment is essential before reaching out. Miami-Dade County and Florida organizations have the strongest case for grants in the $200,000–$500,000 range. Organizations outside Florida should be seeking at least $1M and must demonstrate a tie to the family's historical institutional interests — think Library of Congress-level partnerships, not regional programs.

Timing your outreach is worth considering. Based on news release patterns, the foundation appears to announce major grants in Q1-Q2. Sending an inquiry in Q3–Q4 (July–November) may find staff in a more receptive window between grant cycles.

Common mistakes to avoid: attaching a full proposal to an initial inquiry (it signals you haven't done your homework), leading with organizational need rather than program innovation and excellence, using generic nonprofit language like 'underserved communities' without specific programmatic grounding, and bypassing the professional staff — Thomas Bartelmo and team screen all initial contacts before any communication reaches Kislak family trustees. Persistence is appropriate; aggressive follow-up is not. One follow-up email after three to four weeks of silence is appropriate; escalating further signals poor judgment.