Daily Featured Foundation - 1/29/26

1/29/2026

Here is today’s featured foundation.

The Spencer Foundation

Website: https://www.spencer.org/

Mission & Purpose: To investigate ways in which education, broadly conceived, can be improved around the world. They are the only major national foundation focused exclusively on education research.

Broad Funding Guidelines: This is a national/international funder. They do not fund direct services (like running a school). They fund Academic Research. They support scholars, journalists, and researchers who are studying how people learn. They have specific grant cycles for small and large research grants. Applicants must be affiliated with a nonprofit organization or university to receive funds.

Featured Opportunity: The "Small Research Grants" program (up to $50,000) is one of the most accessible sources of funding for academic researchers. It supports pilot studies, exploratory research, and smaller projects that might not get funded by federal agencies.

Recommendation: An academic researcher, university professor, or a research team at a nonprofit think-tank who needs funding to conduct a specific study on how to improve education outcomes.