Ncmic Foundation Inc.

The NCMIC Foundation operates as a highly specialized mission-driven funder with a tightly defined niche: chiropractic and complementary/integrative health research and education. Unlike general-purpose health foundations, it will not consider proposals outside this domain. Its giving philosophy is rooted in evidence generation — the Foundation exists to build the scientific case for chiropractic care in an increasingly data-driven healthcare system, with an explicit eye toward influencing health policy and reimbursement decisions.

Organizations favored by the Foundation fall into three categories: (1) academic medical centers and universities with credentialed researchers, including schools with established chiropractic or integrative health programs; (2) chiropractic colleges and their research arms (Palmer, Parker, Northwestern Health Sciences, Life Chiropractic West, Campbellsville, National University of Health Sciences); and (3) individual DC-credentialed researchers pursuing advanced degrees or conducting independent research. The grantee roster spans elite institutions — Brigham & Women's Hospital ($403,938 cumulative), Yale University ($200,562), RAND Corporation ($192,853), Mayo Clinic ($135,000), and the University of Minnesota ($285,000) — alongside smaller chiropractic-specific institutions. This breadth signals openness to both blue-chip research partnerships and profession-specific colleges.

The application process does not involve a traditional LOI-then-full-proposal pipeline. Applicants submit a single detailed plan directly to the Advisory Committee — no preliminary expression of interest is required, and no formal online grant portal is described on the website. This directness is unusual among foundations of this asset size ($15.3M) and suggests that relationship-building with directors, particularly through the chiropractic conference circuit, may be as important as the written proposal itself.

First-time applicants should internalize several key norms. The Foundation is explicitly ideologically neutral within chiropractic: it funds without preference for any technique, college, or philosophy — a meaningful signal that overly advocating for a specific chiropractic school of thought would undermine an application. The Foundation will not fund propaganda, legislative lobbying, or political activity. All unused funds must be returned, and progress reports are required throughout the grant period. The Foundation expects accountability and peer-reviewed publication as the standard endpoint for research awards.

The NCMIC Foundation's grant database reveals two distinct funding tiers operating in parallel. Research grants — the primary vehicle for institutional and academic recipients — range from roughly $20,000 to $403,938 per award, with the largest concentration falling between $25,000 and $200,000. Fellowships, which support individual DC researchers pursuing advanced degrees or attending professional conferences, are smaller, typically $5,000 to $25,000 per recipient per year.

Across 101 tracked grants totaling $2,951,482, the average grant size is $29,223 — but this average is weighted heavily by the high volume of smaller fellowship awards. Focusing on institutional research grants only, average awards are considerably larger. The top five recipients by cumulative funding received $1,427,053 combined (48% of all tracked giving), indicating that the Foundation maintains long-term, multi-grant relationships with preferred research partners rather than distributing small amounts broadly.

Annual giving has grown substantially over the available financial disclosure period. Total giving was $268,030 in 2011 and climbed to $1,251,523 in 2023 — a roughly 4.7x increase over 12 years. The most striking jump was between 2022 ($845,070) and 2023 ($1,251,523), a 48% single-year increase suggesting a strategic decision to accelerate grantmaking. Total assets as of 2023 stand at $15.3 million, with net investment income of $525,775 — meaning the endowment does not fully cover annual giving, and the Foundation relies on contributions from NCMIC Group and its policyholders to maintain its grant budget. Contributions received in 2023 totaled $273,288.

Geographically, the Foundation funds nationally with no stated restriction, but tracked grants show concentration in Texas (13 grants), California and Minnesota (10 each), Massachusetts (6), South Carolina (6), and Wisconsin (5). Minnesota's prominence reflects the major University of Minnesota Integrative Health & Wellbeing Research Fellowship Program partnership. Texas reflects the concentration of chiropractic colleges in that state (Parker University, Texas Chiropractic College). By program type, research grants carry the largest individual dollar amounts, while fellowship transactions are more numerous. The Foundation's website states approximately $600,000 in annual grants as a baseline figure, which aligns with recent fiscal years excluding the 2023 spike.

The NCMIC Foundation is uniquely positioned among health funders of similar asset size as the only foundation in its immediate peer group dedicated exclusively to chiropractic and integrative health research. All five closest asset-size comparators are general health funders operating on invitation-only or undisclosed terms.

NCMIC Foundation stands out in two critical ways. First, it accepts open applications — all four asset-comparable peers operate on an invitation-only or undisclosed basis, making NCMIC one of the only accessible options among this cohort for proactive applicants. Second, NCMIC's 2023 giving level of $1.25M represents a payout ratio of approximately 8.2% against its $15.3M asset base — well above the 5% minimum typically required of private foundations and above what most comparable foundations disclose. For chiropractic researchers and integrative health institutions, NCMIC Foundation is effectively unmatched as a source of dedicated, accessible grant funding at this asset scale.

The most significant recent activity centers on the 2026 McAndrews Award cycle. In March 2026, the Foundation recognized six award recipients at the ACC-RAC Conference in Kansas City: Drs. Victoria A. Bensel, Ryan R. Burdick, Wren M. Burton, Kelsey L. Corcoran, and Sarah E. Graham each received the George P. and Jerome F. McAndrews Memorial Research Fund Award, while Dr. David Eisenberg, MD — a recognized pioneer in integrative medicine — received the George P. McAndrews, J.D. and Jerome F. McAndrews, D.C. Pioneer Memorial Research Award for veteran researchers who have shaped the profession. NCMIC President Wayne Wolfson presented the awards, emphasizing the Foundation's commitment to strengthening chiropractic's role in the broader healthcare system.

On the student scholarship front, 2025 marked the completion of a full Bucks for Boards year: 100 chiropractic students received $1,000 each, totaling $100,000 distributed through four quarterly drawings. The program continues at the same pace in 2026. A new NaturoPath to Practice Awards program was introduced in 2025, providing $500 awards to naturopathic medicine students — 10 per quarter in 2025 and 5 per quarter beginning in 2026 — marking a meaningful programmatic expansion beyond chiropractic.

Financially, fiscal year 2023 saw grants paid reach $1,149,115 — up from $771,187 in 2022 and the highest level in any disclosed year. Contributions received in 2023 ($273,288) and net investment income ($525,775) both support the Foundation's elevated grantmaking pace. No major leadership changes were publicly announced in 2025 or 2026; Dr. Louis Sportelli and the existing director team appear to remain in place.

The NCMIC Foundation's application process is streamlined but expects fully developed, complete submissions from the outset. There is no formal LOI stage or pre-qualification portal. Applicants submit a single comprehensive plan directly to the Advisory Committee — meaning your first contact must be a polished, complete document, not a brief inquiry letter. This is a meaningful distinction from most foundations of comparable size.

The five required components are non-negotiable per the Foundation's stated application instructions: (1) a clear statement of intended purpose and objective; (2) a fully itemized budget — note that indirect costs are explicitly excluded, so do not include institutional overhead or facilities-and-administrative (F&A) costs; (3) periodic milestones with specific progress markers; (4) a specific timeline from project start to completion; and (5) a plan for progress reports and final deliverables, with peer-reviewed journal publication expected as the endpoint for research grants.

Alignment language matters enormously. The phrases 'effectiveness, safety, and cost efficiency of chiropractic and alternative healthcare' appear verbatim in every major Foundation communication. Your proposal's abstract and objectives should use this framing directly. Health policy and reimbursement implications strengthen proposals significantly, as the Foundation explicitly values research that can move the needle on how payers and policymakers view chiropractic.

Relationship-building accelerates success. The ACC-RAC Conference (held annually in March) is the Foundation's primary public venue. Attending and presenting there places applicants in direct contact with Advisory Committee members, McAndrews Award recipients, and the broader network of funded researchers. Dr. Louis Sportelli (lsportelli@ncmicfoundation.org) is the director listed on the Foundation's website for inquiries and is the most appropriate point of first contact before submitting.

Common mistakes to avoid: including indirect costs in your budget (they will be removed); advocating for a specific chiropractic technique, school, or philosophy (the Foundation is explicitly neutral and views this unfavorably); omitting a publication plan (if research will not result in a peer-reviewed paper, provide a clear explanation); and failing to define measurable interim milestones (open-ended project descriptions will not satisfy the Advisory Committee's accountability requirements).