Mirken Foundation

The Mirken Foundation is a New York-based private foundation (EIN 13-6916436) established in 1990 by the late Alan B. Mirken, former president of Crown Publishing Group (sold to Random House in 1988). After Mirken's death in 2014 at age 84, the foundation continues under trustees Jane Zenker and Leslie Rubin. The foundation gives primarily for Jewish communal organizations, higher education, health and medical research, and community services. Its grantmaking is highly concentrated — a single grant to the Jewish Communal Fund often represents the majority of annual disbursements. The foundation's approach is relationship-based with a small number of large grants to established institutions rather than broad community grantmaking. Prospective grantees outside the current portfolio should have strong connections to Jewish communal life, higher education, or medical research.

In fiscal year 2024, the foundation distributed $684,150, with a single grant of $675,000 to the Jewish Communal Fund for general support. This pattern of concentrated giving to the Jewish Communal Fund is consistent across recent years, with $2.09 million combined going to that organization over the last three years. Other recurring recipients include Colby College (Waterville, ME, $200,000 combined), Boca West Foundation (FL), Israel Tennis Centers Foundation (NY), and Michael J. Fox Foundation (NY). The foundation also sponsors the Alan B. Mirken NYC Social Work Immersion Trip at Syracuse University. Grant count is very low (2 grants in 2024, 5 in 2022-2023), reflecting a concentrated rather than distributed grantmaking strategy. Total assets are $14.3 million with zero liabilities.

The Mirken Foundation is smaller and more concentrated in its grantmaking than most NYC-based Jewish philanthropic foundations. Its 4.8% payout rate is near the IRS minimum of 5%, and its strategy of channeling the majority of funds through the Jewish Communal Fund (a donor-advised fund) suggests the actual end beneficiaries may be more diverse than the 990 filings indicate.

Revenue in 2024 was $2.96 million, primarily from asset sales (93.6%), with smaller contributions from other income (4.0%) and dividends (2.4%). Total assets grew from $2.3 million in 2012 to $14.3 million in 2024, driven by a major $8.8 million contribution in 2013. The foundation receives no new contributions in recent years — growth is entirely from investment returns. Charitable disbursements in 2024 were $684,150 (79.1% of expenses). No officers receive compensation. The most recent 990-PF was filed for fiscal year 2024. The foundation's website (mirken.org) is active but built on WordPress/Wix with minimal public-facing content.

Application process is informal: submit a letter stating purpose and amount to Mirken Foundation, 14 Penn Plaza, Suite 1506, New York, NY 10122, phone (212) 687-0050. No stated deadlines or restrictions. Key considerations: (1) The foundation overwhelmingly funds the Jewish Communal Fund, so breaking into the grantee portfolio requires strong alignment with Jewish communal life or personal connections to the trustees. (2) Higher education institutions with connections to the Mirken family (Colby College, Syracuse University) receive recurring grants. (3) Health research (Michael J. Fox Foundation) and Israel-related causes (Israel Tennis Centers) round out the portfolio. (4) Requests should be in the $25,000-$200,000 range for non-JCF grants. (5) Emphasize institutional prestige and clear program outcomes. (6) This is a legacy foundation — cold outreach is unlikely to succeed without a personal introduction.