William T. Grant Foundation

William T. Grant Foundation

The William T. Grant Foundation was established in 1936 by William Thomas Grant, who built the W. T. Grant chain of variety stores. Its mandate centers on funding research rather than direct operations or family wealth preservation. The foundation allocates roughly 15.5 percent of assets to private equity and maintains positions in public equities through external managers. Confirmed holdings include commitments to Torchlight Investors, PeakSpan Capital, Hanover Investors, MCR Hotels, Makena Capital Management, and Riverside Micro-Cap Fund VI. It also holds equity in Silvercrest Asset Management Group, Eagle Capital Management, Silchester International Investors, Baillie Gifford, and BlackRock. Geographic exposure centers on the United States with limited international equity exposure. The organization employs 27 professionals and maintains its headquarters in New York. It belongs to Philanthropy New York, the Council on Foundations, and Independent Sector. In December 2024 the foundation hosted a webinar outlining application procedures for grants focused on research evidence use. Governance separates the grant-making function from investment execution through a board of trustees that includes former public pension leadership. Service providers include PKF O'Connor Davies as auditor, BNY Mellon as custodian, and Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler as legal counsel since 1974.