Y & S Nazarian Family Foundation

The Y & S Nazarian Family Foundation operates as a deeply personal, relationship-driven family foundation anchored in the Jewish-Iranian philanthropic tradition of Beverly Hills. Founded in 2000 by Iranian-American business leader Younes Nazarian and his wife Soraya J. Nazarian, the foundation channels approximately $2.5M–$4.5M in normalized annual giving across four interlocking priorities: education (its stated primary mission), Israeli and Jewish causes, arts and culture, and community support concentrated in Los Angeles and Tel Aviv.

The most critical fact for any grant seeker: this foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals. It operates on a purely preselected grantee model. All grants flow from direct relationships with the Nazarian family trustees — Younes, Soraya, David Nazarian (CFO), and Shulamit Nazarian — and through the Junior Board of Advisors, composed of the founders' grandchildren who each manage their own discretionary giving portfolios. Sharon Nazarian serves as President at $150,000 annual compensation and is the foundation's primary executive decision-maker, with U.S. operations staffed by Administrator Eitan Trabin.

For organizations with genuine alignment, the path to consideration runs through relationship cultivation rather than formal application mechanics. Organizations already supported by the foundation's major grantees — IMA Foundation (Israel), WIZO, American Jewish University, UCLA Foundation, or Cedars-Sinai — are best positioned to request warm introductions. Work connecting to named Nazarian initiatives carries the highest alignment signal: The Soraya performing arts center at CSUN, the Younes & Soraya Nazarian Center for Israel Studies at UCLA, and the Nazarian Academic Library at Sapir College are the flagship legacy relationships.

Direct outreach to Eitan Trabin at info@yandsnazarianfamilyfoundation.org with a concise mission-alignment note is the appropriate opening move — a 2–3 paragraph email requesting an introductory call outperforms any PDF attachment. The foundation favors institutions of excellence already carrying or prepared to pursue the Nazarian name: naming endowments, fellowships, and physical spaces are the preferred vehicle for major gifts of $100,000 or more. For recurring general support grants ($5,000–$30,000), the pool is wider but still relationship-gated through the Junior Board and existing grantee networks.

First-time contact should focus entirely on demonstrating mission and geographic alignment — Los Angeles and Tel Aviv — before any ask is made.

Total documented giving in the grant database spans 137 grants across 10 states, totaling $7.35M — but annual disbursements vary dramatically year to year. Fiscal year 2023 was the highest recorded year at $8.97M in total giving ($8.38M in grants paid), driven by $3.49M in contributions received — the largest contribution infusion since FY2012 ($11.99M in contributions). Normalized annual giving ranges from $1.55M (FY2022) to $4.74M (FY2019), with FY2024 at $4.1M suggesting mid-range activity is the sustainable baseline.

Median grant from the typical_grant_size profile is $10,000, with an average of $60,760 — heavily skewed by a small number of transformative gifts. The three largest documented relationships alone account for 45% of all giving: IMA Foundation (Israel) received $1,750,142 across 4 grants; WIZO received $1,000,000 across 2 grants; Bezalel School of Design received $600,000 in a single grant. Grant amounts documented in the top-50 grantee data range from $1,000 to $1,750,142 — an unusually wide range reflecting both the family principals' major legacy gifts and the Junior Board's smaller discretionary awards.

Breaking down by program area: Israeli and Jewish organizations account for approximately 52% of documented giving (IMA Foundation, WIZO, Friends of the Israel Defense Forces [$508K], The Jewish Federation [$300K], HIAS [$105K], WIZO Los Angeles [$511K], and related organizations). Higher education — American Jewish University [$400K], Bezalel School of Design [$600K], UCLA Foundation [$285K], UC Regents [$102K] — accounts for roughly 25%. Healthcare (Cedars-Sinai [$500K], Stanford [$30K], Saint John's Health Center [$15K], Venice Family Clinic [$16K]) accounts for approximately 8%. Arts and culture (Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance [$214K], Hammer Museum [$81K], Institute of Contemporary Art [$45K], Skirball Cultural Center [$10K], LACMA [$19K]) accounts for roughly 8%.

Geographically, California dominates with 99 of 137 grants (72%), concentrated in Los Angeles County. New York accounts for 18 grants (13%). DC, FL, MA, MD, MO, MS, NJ, and VA collectively account for the remaining 20 grants. Officer compensation is consistently $150,000 per year for President Sharon Nazarian; all trustees — Younes, Soraya, David, and Shulamit Nazarian — serve without compensation.

The peer foundations matched by asset size share the Philanthropy & Grantmaking NTEE classification but differ substantially from the Nazarian Foundation in geography, focus specificity, and public profile.

The Nazarian Foundation stands apart from its asset-matched peers in three meaningful ways. First, it maintains an explicit transnational giving footprint — the U.S.–Israel corridor is a stated strategic axis, not incidental geography, with staff on the ground in both Beverly Hills (Eitan Trabin) and Tel Aviv (Dana Glikman-Dotan, COO of the IMA Foundation). Second, its cultural heritage dimension (Persian/Iranian Jewish community) gives it a highly specific identity that defines both who it funds and who can realistically approach it. Third, its gift range is unusually wide for a $22.9M foundation — from $1,000 micro-grants to single gifts exceeding $1.75M — reflecting multiple giving tiers from family principals down through the Junior Board of Advisors. All peer foundations in this cohort are private family foundations operating on relationship-driven, largely invitation-only models consistent with this asset tier.

The foundation's most recent IRS filing (FY2024, submitted November 11, 2025) reflects $4.1M in charitable disbursements across 37 distinct grant recipients, with 31 classified as new grantees — an 84% new-grantee rate that stands as the most notable recent development. This pattern strongly suggests the Junior Board of Advisors is actively expanding the grantee portfolio beyond the foundation's historic core recipients, representing a meaningful structural shift in how new relationships are initiated.

The FY2023 year was exceptional by any measure: $8.38M in grants paid and $8.97M in total giving represent the foundation's highest documented disbursements on record, coinciding with $3.49M in contributions received — the highest contribution infusion since FY2012. Total assets held at $22.9M through FY2024 despite the FY2023 disbursement level, indicating the foundation's investment portfolio absorbed the outflow.

No public press releases or formal announcements from 2025–2026 have been identified through available sources. The foundation maintains a deliberately low public profile consistent with private family foundations in this asset tier. Its Israel-facing operations through the IMA Foundation in Tel Aviv — established 2003, focused on narrowing Israel's social and economic gaps through education — remain a core ongoing commitment. Sharon Nazarian continues as President and primary decision-maker. Eitan Trabin serves as U.S. Foundation Administrator. Dana Glikman-Dotan oversees Israeli operations as COO of the IMA Foundation.

Because this is an invitation-only foundation, the following tips are calibrated specifically to the Nazarian Foundation's documented grantmaking dynamics — not generic grant-writing advice.

Start with mission alignment, not an ask. The appropriate first contact is a 2–3 paragraph email to Eitan Trabin (Foundation Administrator) at info@yandsnazarianfamilyfoundation.org. Identify your organization, state your geographic connection (Los Angeles or Israel), describe your alignment with the foundation's priorities, and request a 20-minute introduction call. Never attach a proposal to a first email.

Lead with geographic specificity. The foundation explicitly names Los Angeles and Tel Aviv as its grantmaking cities. Southern California-based organizations should emphasize their LA County presence in the first sentence. Israel-based or U.S.–Israel bridge organizations should highlight their Israeli operational footprint. Organizations based elsewhere should not apply unless they have a direct program footprint in either city.

Use the foundation's own language. Their materials emphasize "education as the most important catalyst for societal change," "giving back to Jewish and Iranian roots," "enriching institutions of excellence," and "arts as a tool for learning, teaching tolerance and confidence-building for children." Mirror this framing authentically if it fits your work.

Identify a naming opportunity for major gifts. The foundation's largest multi-year commitments — The Soraya at CSUN, the Nazarian Center at UCLA, the Nazarian Library at Sapir College — all involve naming rights. For gifts of $100,000 or more, propose a specific endowed program, fellowship, series, or space bearing the Nazarian name.

Time outreach for September–October. The foundation's Q4 activity is likely devoted to executing committed year-end grants. Fall is the optimal window for introductory outreach ahead of year-end decision cycles.

For general support grants ($5K–$30K): reference your embeddedness in the Iranian-American Jewish ecosystem in Los Angeles — Sinai Temple, JQ International, Iranian American Jewish Federation, and HIAS are peer organizations the foundation already funds. Community positioning within these networks matters more than program specifics.

Don't over-engineer a project proposal. Over 95% of documented grants are categorized as General Support. The foundation funds institutions they trust, broadly. A clear organizational narrative outperforms a project-specific budget breakdown.