Philanthropic Ventures Foundation

The Philanthropic Ventures Foundation is a nonprofit based in Oakland, California that gives grants to support the arts, housing and the environment focused on the San Francisco Bay Area. 1

Read More

At-A-Glance

Type: Non-profit, 501(c)(3)
Website: www.Venturesfoundation.org
Formation:

1991

Founder:

Bill Somerville

Location: Oakland, CA View on map
Tax ID: 94-3136771
Most Recent Filing: 2024
Budget (2024): Assets: $89,430,220 Revenue: $58,681,026 Expenses: $49,068,184

Contents

    The foundation approves or denies grants within 48 hours of receiving the application. 2  Founder Bill Somerville said he likes to “clinch the deal” with a handshake. 3 Somerville told USA Today in 2014 “What we do is trust ‘em and fund ‘em.” 4

    James Higa, executive director of Philanthropic Ventures Foundation, called the “inequality gap” the “defining issue of our generation.” 5

    Grantmaking

    Philanthropic Ventures Foundation has given $187.4 million in grants from 1991 to 2021. 1  The foundation set a record in 2021 with $16.7 million in grantmaking, bettering the previous high of $12.9 million in 2015. 1

    In 2021, the foundation administered 46 donor advised funds. 1

    The Philanthropic Ventures Foundation gave a $200,000 grant to the Facebook Community Fund. 1

    The Philanthropic Ventures Foundation gave $1 million to Hate Is A Virus 1 nonprofit that mobilizes the Asian American Pacific Islander community “to stand up for our own community.” 6

    Finances

    Philanthropic Ventures Foundation had $16.1 million in total revenue in 2021 and $13.6 million in total expenses. 7

    Donors to Philanthropic Ventures Foundation include the left-leaning grantmaker The California Endowment. 8 The San Francisco Foundation is also a donor and it makes grants mostly to left-of-center and liberal organizations. 9

    The Heising-Simons Foundation is also a donor. 1 Liberal philanthropists Liz Simons and her husband Mark Heising lead the Heising-Simons Foundation 10 and both are major donors to the Democratic Party. 11 The Philanthropic Ventures Foundation received a $100,000 grant from the Heising-Simons Foundation for the “equitable leverage of workforce investments.” 9 The Heising-Simons Foundation stated that the inequities in society are due to “discriminatory polices and practices enacted and designed to preserve historical power structures.” 12

    Leadership

    Somerville is the founder of Philanthropic Ventures Foundation and has worked as its president since it was formed in 1991. 13

    Moira Walsh is chair of the board of directors. 1 Walsh is an attorney who was most notably the managing attorney of the San Francisco City Attorney’s office. 14

    U.S. Representative Jackie Speier (D-CA) is on the board of directors of Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. 14

    James Higa is the executive director of Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. 15 Higa reported directly to Steve Jobs when he worked for Apple and NeXT and was a member of the original Macintosh team. 5

    Financial Statistics

    Total Assets

    Total Revenue

    Total Expenses

    YearTotal AssetsTotal RevenueTotal ExpensesFiling
    2024 $89,430,220 $58,681,026 $49,068,184 View
    2023 $81,605,913 $71,022,800 $24,930,502 View
    2022 $32,597,542 $22,915,613 $23,373,623 View
    2021 $36,414,979 $20,169,103 $17,471,267 View
    2020 $31,645,319 $16,137,293 $13,569,821 View

    Prior year filings: 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011

    Revenue Detail

    Expenses Detail

    Employee Compensation

    • Number of Employees: 7

    Highest Earning Employees

    EmployeeTitleTotal Compensation
    Dawn HawkCOO$210,000

    Grant Activity

    All-time grants received statistics from Candid dataset:

    • Total Grant Value: $123,909,156
    • Number of Grants: 969
    • Number of Funders: 260

    Selection of highest value grants received from the last seven years:

    AmountYearFunderSubject
    $31,512,6512023 Silicon Valley Community Foundation
    $4,072,1352020 Women's Foundation CaliforniaFbo: YWCA of the mid-peninsula daf
    $2,854,7192024 Peery FoundationGENERAL SUPPORT
    $2,021,2992021 Erik E and Edith H Bergstrom Foundation a Charitable TrustFOR WORK SUPPORTING REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH IN UGANDA, BOLIVIA, VENEZUELA AND THE UNITED STATES
    $1,876,4062023 Erik E and Edith H Bergstrom Foundation a Charitable TrustFOR WORK IN GUATEMALA, MEXICO, VENEZUELA AND THE UNITED STATES
    $1,866,1802022 Erik E and Edith H Bergstrom Foundation a Charitable TrustFOR WORK SUPPORTING REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH IN UGANDA, BOLIVIA, GUATEMALA, HAITI, MEXICO, VENEZUELA, AND THE UNITED STATES
    $1,840,8102024 Silicon Valley Community Foundation
    $1,464,6322024 Erik E and Edith H Bergstrom Foundation a Charitable TrustFOR WORK IN GUATEMALA, MEXICO, VENEZUELA AND THE UNITED STATES
    $1,339,7572020 Erik E and Edith H Bergstrom Foundation a Charitable TrustFOR WORK SUPPORTING REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH IN UGANDA, BOLIVIA, VENEZUELA AND THE UNITED STATES
    $1,000,0002024 The David and Lucile Packard Foundationfor core support of Rise East for collective impact effort to improve the health and well-being of Black children and families in East Oakland
    $1,000,0002024 Harnisch Family Foundation C/o Peconic PartnersCHARITABLE
    $1,000,0002024 The Heising-Simons Foundationto support quality UPK implementation in California
    $1,000,0002023 Blue Meridian PartnersTO SUPPORT SCALING PLAN
    $860,4402023 New Venture FundYOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND EDUCATION
    $850,0002024 The Heising-Simons Foundationfor capacity building support to Education Program grantees
    $850,0002022 The James Irvine FoundationTo support the scaling and capacity building of a talent development agency that supports low-wage, returning citizens access to livable wage work, through a designated fund such as Turning Basin Labs.
    $761,4902021 PayPal Giving FundGeneral Support
    $684,2192023 Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift FundFor grant recipient's exempt purposes
    $650,0002024 Stupski FoundationTo sponsor the Perennial Sunflower project's Convening for White Men in Philanthropy Who Are Working to Advance Equity & Justice and support the Rise East initiative of the Oakland Thrives project.
    $639,8502024 Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund for Wealth Management IncCOMMUNITY & HUMAN SERVICES
    $622,0812023 Silicon Valley Community Foundation
    $618,5702024 National Philanthropic TrustHEALTH
    $525,0002022 The Heising-Simons Foundationto administer the Responsive Fund for Grantee Communications for Heising-Simons Foundation grantees
    $500,0002024 Arrow ImpactRISE EAST INITIATIVE
    $500,0002024 Gates FoundationPUBLIC AWARENESS AND ANALYSIS

    All-time grants given statistics from Candid dataset:

    • Total Grant Value: $82,869,156
    • Number of Grants: 1,403
    • Number of Recipients: 687

    Selection of highest value grants given from the last seven years:

    AmountYearFunderSubject
    $15,740,1342024 Black Cultural Zone Community Development CorporationFOR YOUR ORGANIZATION'S WORK ON CERTAIN INVESTMENT AREAS OF THE RISE EAST INITIATIVE
    $5,043,1792024 Roots Community HealthFOR YOUR ORGANIZATION'S WORK ON CERTAIN INVESTMENT AREAS OF THE RISE EAST INITIATIVE
    $1,650,0002024 Multiple SOUTH AMERICA RecipientsLAND PURCHASE AND OPERATIONS FOR SCIENCE MUSEUM
    $1,292,7992023 Resilia AcademyGENERAL SUPPORT
    $1,267,8212022 ResiliaACCESS TO ON-DEMAND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND CAPACITY BUILDING SUPPORT
    $1,130,2242024 Resilia AcademyTO SUPPORT ACCESS TO ON-DEMAND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND CAPACITY BUILDING SUPPORT
    $803,7752022 Alameda County Behavioral Health Care ServicesALAMEDA INNOVATIONS – ROUND 4 FUND
    $800,0002023 Multiple SOUTH AMERICA RecipientsSUPPORT FOR SCIENCE MUSEUM
    $678,8372023 Oakstop AllianceGENERAL SUPPORT
    $579,0002024 Brotherhood of Elders NetworkFOR YOUR ORGANIZATION'S WORK ON CERTAIN INVESTMENT AREAS OF THE RISE EAST INITIATIVE AS DESCRIBED IN EXHIBIT A OF THE GRANT AGREEMENT
    $529,1972022 Multiple North America RecipientsLIVABLE CITIES PROGRAM
    $520,0002021 Preserving Affordable Housing LongtermPLACEKEEPING FOR THE PLACEKEEPERS
    $500,0002021 SAN JOSE PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATIONTO SUPPORT SJ ASPIRES
    $499,9172021 Multiple North America RecipientsLIVEABLE CITIES PROGRAM
    $499,6712024 Multiple North America RecipientsHEALTH PROGRAMS AROUND THE WORLD
    $491,9602023 Multiple North America RecipientsHEALTH PROGRAMS AROUND THE WORLD
    $471,0002024 Multiple EUROPE (INCLUDING ICELAND & GREENLAND) RecipientsOPERATIONAL COSTS, SCHOOL EQUIPMENT, TEXTBOOKS
    $468,4872024 Actai Global IncGENERAL SUPPORT
    $462,0002024 TURIMIQUIRE FOUNDATION INCFAMILY PLANNING
    $460,0002021 United Hope Builders IncGENERAL SUPPORT
    $451,9282022 Multiple Sub-Saharan Africa RecipientsHOLISTIC APPROACH FAMILY PLANNING
    $407,0002021 Multiple Sub-Saharan Africa RecipientsHOLISTIC APPROACH FAMILY PLANNING
    $375,0002024 Catholic Worker HouseGENERAL SUPPORT
    $364,3702020 Multiple North America RecipientsGENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
    $352,0002020 Multiple SOUTH AMERICA RecipientsGENERAL SUPPORT OF THE POVERTY STOPLIGHT PROGRAM

    Contact InfluenceWatch to report errors, suggest edits, or provide tips for additional profiles.

    Contact Us

    Financials, employee compensation, and grant information provided by Candid.

    Mentioned in this Article

    References

    1. Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. 2021 Annual Report. Accessed Oct. 20, 2022. https://www.venturesfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/annual-report-2021-5.pdf
    2. Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. About Us. Accessed Oct. 21, 2022. https://www.venturesfoundation.org/about-us/
    3. [1] Jon Swartz. “Prosperity, Poverty Nestle Together In Same Span Of Calif.”; USA Today. Nov. 6, 2014. Accessed Oct. 22, 2022.
    4. Jon Swartz. “Prosperity, Poverty Nestle Together In Same Span Of Calif.”; USA Today. Nov. 6, 2014. Accessed Oct. 22, 2022.
    5. About Me. James Higa. Accessed Oct. 21, 2022. https://about.me/jameshiga
    6. Hate Is A Virus. Our Impact. Accessed Oct. 20, 2022. https://hateisavirus.org/our-impact
    7. Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. Form 990. 2020. Part I. Summary. Accessed Oct. 22, 2022. https://www.venturesfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/pvf-2020-return-public-disclosure-copy.pdf
    8. [1] Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. 2021 Annual Report. Accessed Oct. 20, 2022. https://www.venturesfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/annual-report-2021-5.pdf
    9. Heising-Simons Foundation. Search Our Grants And Awards. Accessed Oct. 24, 2022. https://www.hsfoundation.org/grants/search-our-grants/?keyword=EL+WIN&program=179&amount-min=&amount-max=&year-min=From&year-max=To
    10. Heising-Simons Foundation. Programs. Accessed Oct. 18, 2020. https://www.hsfoundation.org/programs/
    11. Jon Swaine. Hilary Osborne. “Democratic Donor Built Up Vast $8bn Private Wealth Fund in Bermuda.” The Guardian. November 07, 2017. Accessed October 18, 2020. https://www.theguardian.com/news/2017/nov/07/democratic-donor-james-simons-private-wealth-fund-tax-haven-paradise-papers ^
    12. Heising-Simons Foundation. Equity Framework. Accessed Oct. 24, 2022. https://www.hsfoundation.org/about/equity-framework/
    13. Bill Somerville. Linked In. Accessed Oct. 22, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/billsomerville/
    14. “Board of Directors.” Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. Philanthropic Ventures Foundation, March 8, 2022. https://www.venturesfoundation.org/board-of-directors-board-of-advisors/.
    15. Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. Foundation Staff. Accessed Oct. 21, 2022. https://www.venturesfoundation.org/foundation-staff/#billsomerville