The Risc Foundation Inc.

## How to Approach the RISC Foundation

The RISC Foundation (Responsible Investment for Social Change) is a family-managed private foundation led by attorney L. Linfield Simon and other Simon family members, based in New Haven, Connecticut. The foundation was established in 2008 with a dual mission: promoting positive social change and assuming risk in investment decisions to advance that change.

Critical caveat for prospective applicants: The RISC Foundation currently only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. The foundation's website has been dismantled (redirects to a Google login page), and formal grantmaking to diverse organizations essentially ceased after 2021. Since 2022, the foundation has awarded only 2 grants per year, with the vast majority of funding flowing to the Community Foundation of Greater New Haven.

If you are seeking funding alignment with RISC's priorities, the best pathway is through the Community Foundation of Greater New Haven (CFGNH). CFGNH serves as the primary intermediary for RISC Foundation dollars and runs its own competitive grant programs in education, community development, arts, and human services — all areas historically funded by RISC. Check CFGNH's grant opportunities page for current open applications.

For organizations with existing relationships with the Simon family or RISC Foundation leadership, alignment signals include: New Haven-area community impact, early childhood education, arts and culture (especially performing arts), and economic development. The foundation values place-based impact in the Greater New Haven region above all else.

## Funding Patterns

Total Assets (2024): $279.4 million Total Giving (2024): $6.77 million (approximately 2.4% payout rate) Revenue (2024): $24.7 million, primarily from investment gains ($23.6M) and dividends ($1.1M)

### Grant Size Distribution The foundation operates with a bimodal distribution pattern: - Large anchor grants: $5–7 million annually to the Community Foundation of Greater New Haven - Smaller programmatic grants: Around $50,000 for individual organizations (e.g., Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival)

The dramatic drop from 19-20 grantees to just 2 after 2021 is the defining feature of RISC's recent funding pattern. The total dollar amount has remained in the $5-7M range, but it is now concentrated almost entirely in the Community Foundation of Greater New Haven. The only other consistent recipient since 2022 is Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival ($50K/year).

### Geographic Distribution - Primary: New Haven, Connecticut and surrounding metro area - Secondary: Massachusetts (Jacob's Pillow in Becket), with historical minor support in Maine, New York, and Washington DC

### Sector Focus Education, community development, early childhood programs, arts and culture, and human services — all channeled through the Community Foundation of Greater New Haven since 2022.

## Peer Comparison

The RISC Foundation sits in the upper-mid tier of private foundations nationally ($279M in assets) and is one of the larger private foundations in the New Haven-Milford, CT metro area. Its NTEE classification is T20 (Private Foundations).

### Peer Foundation Comparison

### Key Differentiators - Payout rate: RISC's 2.4% payout is below the IRS-required 5% minimum distribution for private foundations, though qualifying distributions may include administrative costs and investments that count toward the requirement. - Consolidation strategy: Unlike most peer foundations that distribute grants across dozens of organizations, RISC has consolidated nearly all giving into a single intermediary (CFGNH). This is unusual and suggests either a wind-down strategy or a deliberate shift to using CFGNH as a fiscal intermediary for grantmaking decisions. - Family governance: All officer positions are held by Simon family members, which is typical for foundations of this size but means there is limited external governance or advisory input. - Asset growth vs. giving: Assets have grown from $43M (2011) to $279M (2024) — a 549% increase — while giving has remained relatively flat, suggesting the foundation prioritizes investment growth over current-year distributions.

## Recent Activity

### Website Dismantling (2021-2022) The most significant recent development is the dismantling of the foundation's public website. The domain riscfoundation.org now redirects to a Google Accounts login page, indicating the site was built on Google Sites and has been restricted to internal access only. This coincided with the dramatic reduction in the number of grantees from 19 to just 2 beginning in 2022.

### Shift to Intermediary Grantmaking (2022-Present) Since 2022, the RISC Foundation has effectively outsourced its grantmaking by channeling nearly all funds through the Community Foundation of Greater New Haven. In 2024, CFGNH received $6.72M of the total $6.77M in grants (99.3%). This represents a fundamental strategic shift from direct grantmaking to intermediary-based philanthropy. Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival remains the sole direct grantee at $50K/year, likely reflecting a personal connection of the Simon family to this performing arts institution in the Berkshires.

### New Haven Investment Fund The foundation historically operated the New Haven Investment Fund (NHIF), focused on economic development for the city. References to this program appear on archived pages of the foundation website. The current status of the NHIF is unclear given the website shutdown, but the reduction in direct grantmaking suggests this program may be dormant or fully transferred to CFGNH.

### Leadership Stability The Simon family leadership has remained stable: L. Linfield Simon (President), Susan R. Simon (VP/Clerk), Caitlin J. Simon (Treasurer), and Gregory A. Huber (Director). Notably, the president's reported compensation dropped from $160,000 in some years to $0 in 2024, which may indicate a reduced operational role.

### Asset Growth Amid Reduced Activity Despite reduced grantmaking activity, the foundation's assets have continued to grow significantly, from approximately $205M to $279M in recent years. This investment-focused approach aligns with the foundation's name (Responsible Investment for Social Change) and suggests the Simon family may be building the endowment for future large-scale philanthropic deployment.

## Application Tips

### The Honest Reality The RISC Foundation is not currently accepting applications. The foundation explicitly states it "only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds." Sending unsolicited proposals will not yield results and may be counterproductive.

### Alternative Pathways to RISC Funding

1. Apply through the Community Foundation of Greater New Haven (CFGNH) Since CFGNH receives 99%+ of RISC Foundation dollars and runs its own open grant programs, this is the most viable pathway. CFGNH offers competitive grants in: - Basic needs and community development - Education and youth development - Arts and culture - Organizational capacity building

Visit cfgnh.org/strengthening-nonprofits/grants-to-apply-for for current opportunities. CFGNH also runs a grant writing workshop series (next in 2026).

2. Build Relationships in the New Haven Philanthropic Community The Simon family is active in the New Haven community. Attending local philanthropic events, community foundation gatherings, and arts events may create organic connection points. Focus on demonstrating impact in the Greater New Haven area.

3. Align with Historical RISC Priorities If you have an existing connection to the foundation or its leadership, emphasize: - Direct, measurable impact on New Haven residents - Early childhood education and care - Community economic development - Arts and performing arts programming - Programs that embody "responsible investment for social change"

4. For Arts Organizations Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival is the only non-CFGNH grantee that has maintained funding through the consolidation period. If you are a performing arts organization, particularly in the New England region, there may be a slim avenue for funding through direct relationship-building with the Simon family.

### What NOT to Do - Do not send cold proposals or letters of inquiry to the foundation - Do not attempt to contact the foundation through the defunct website - Do not assume the foundation's historical program areas are currently active for direct grants - The phone number (203) 430-5013 is the only known contact, but unsolicited calls are unlikely to be productive