Leon Levy Foundation
/OVERVIEW: Arts and culture and nature and gardens funding operate almost exclusively in New York, supporting both landmark institutions and small, community-led groups. The ancient world program is global in scope and has funded major excavations and restoration projects in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Human rights funding supports large national organizations and NGOs and has recently focused on the rights of immigrants in the U.S. In neuroscience, Levy funds fellowships at five prestigious New York research institutes.
IP TAKE: This is not an accessible funder. It does not accept grant applications; however, it does post profiles of its officers and staff on its website. Grantseekers can reach the foundation by telephone; nevertheless, this is a difficult funder from which to receive funding, especially for groups outside of New York City. More than half of the Leon Levy Foundation’s grants stay in the New York City area.
The foundation gives many of its grants to large cultural institutions, research teams, and individual researchers; however, this is a tough funder to crack. Network with previous grantees, especially larger institutions, to learn how they received a grant. This funding is going to take some work to track down. It’s somewhat approachable, so the foundation might help you learn more about how it funds.
PROFILE: The Leon Levy Foundation was established in 2004 with an endowment from the estate of “Wall Street investment genius” and former president of Princeton’s Institute for Advanced Study, Leon Levy. He started on Wall Street as a research analyst after leaving the U.S. Army, then became the youngest partner of Oppenheimer & Co. Over the next five decades, he became an influential figure in the financial sector and a generous philanthropist. Based in New York City, the Leon Levy Foundation is currently steered by Levy’s widow, Shelby White, and aims to build on its founder’s philanthropic vision. Its current funding initiatives are the ancient world, arts and humanities, neuroscience, human rights, Jewish culture and nature and gardens.
Grants for Arts, Culture and Humanities Research
Arts and culture funding stems from the Leon Levy Foundation’s ancient world, arts and humanities and nature and gardens initiatives. The ancient world program supports “scholarship and research that leads to an interdisciplinary and cross-cultural understanding and appreciation of civilizations and the ancient world.” Recent grants from this program have backed major archeological and preservation projects as well as museums and research institutes. In Israel, the foundation funded the excavation of Ashkelon, an ancient seaport, and the construction of the Lod Mosaic Archeological Center. The foundation also runs a signature program that supports the publication of archeological fieldwork from significant sites in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Levy’s arts and humanities program demonstrates a strong commitment to New York City cultural institutions. Past humanities and arts grantees include the Brooklyn Museum, the Brooklyn Public Library, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the Museum of Modern Art and the New York Philharmonic. Smaller grants have gone to less-known organizations including the Tenement Museum, the New York Shakespeare Festival, the Fiji Theater Company and the Socrates Sculpture Park. In 2020, the foundation committed $250,000 to COVID-19 relief for New York City arts organizations.
Some of the foundation’s ancient world and arts and humanities grants have supported institutions of higher education in the New York City area. At NYU, the foundation provides ongoing support to the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, and at the City University of New York, Levy has funded the Leon Levy Center for Biography.
Other arts and culture grants stem from the foundation’s nature and gardens initiative, which prioritizes New York area parks and outdoor spaces. Grantees include the New York Botanical Garden, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Prospect Park and Westchester County’s Leon Levy Preserve.
Grants for Brain and Cell Research
The Leon Levy Foundation funds Leon Levy Fellowships in Neuroscience to promote the study of “mind, brain and behavior” at five prestigious New York City institutions: Columbia University’s Irving Medical Center, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NYU’s Langone Health Center, the Rockefeller University and Weill Cornell Medicine. Fellowships are generally awarded to M.D.s and Ph.D.s who specialize in neuroscience, neurobiology, biopsychology, cognitive science, biotechnology and related fields. Fellows share their work and findings each year at the Leon Levy Fellows in Neuroscience Symposium.
Grants for Global Security and Human Rights
Levy’s human rights initiative supports “advocacy and the protection of the right to political freedom, humane treatment and free speech.” One recent grant supported the Committee to Protect Journalists, which reports violations of press freedom around the world. Other grantees include Human Rights First, Physicians for Human Rights, the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee and the Immigrant Justice Corps, an organization that provides legal assistance to immigrants and asylum seekers in the U.S.
Grants for Environmental Conservation
While the focus of Levy’s nature and gardens program is New York City area parks and outdoor spaces, grants have also supported a broad range of organizations involved in the conservation of the natural world. The foundation has partnered with the Bahamas National Trust to create the Leon Levy Native Plant Preserve, which propagates and protects native plant species and runs environmental education programs. The foundation has also given to the National Parks Foundation, the American Bird Conservancy, the National Parks of New York Harbor Conservancy and the Maine Coast Heritage Trust.
Grants for Jewish Causes
The Levy Foundation is a long-time supporter of Jewish cultural organizations, focusing mainly on organizations in New York City and Israel. The foundation provides ongoing support to the Jewish Museum and the Center for Jewish History. Other past grantees include the Israel Museum, the Harvard Semitic Museum and the Israel Antiquities Authority.
Important Grant Details:
The Leon Levy Foundation made over $20 million in grants in a recent year. Grants range from $2,000 to over $3 million, with an average grant size of about $50,000. This funder supports organizations of all sizes but prioritizes New York City institutions. Grants for the ancient world and human rights focus areas are global in scope. For additional information about past grantmaking, see the foundation’s individual program pages or its recent tax filings.
The Leon Levy Foundation accepts grant proposals by invitation only. The foundation may be reached by telephone at 212-455-6270. Profiles of the foundation’s officers and staff are available on its website.
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