Mattel Children’s Foundation
/OVERVIEW: Mattel Children’s Foundation prioritizes children’s health, STEAM, literacy, women and girls, and after-school activities. It does not accept unsolicited applications and tends to support the same organizations and programs year after year.
IP TAKE: The Mattel Children’s Foundation supports children’s health, education, housing and women’s and girls causes through grants, toy donations and volunteer programs. Its international funding tends to go to pediatric hospitals and other healthcare providers. In the U.S., the foundation supports a broad range of educational, health and community organizations, prioritizing underserved children and youth. This funder does not name geographic priorities but appears to emphasize organizations in New York, California and Florida.
Mattel is not an accessible funder. It does not accept unsolicited applications for funding, but grantseekers may email the Mattel company’s corporate social impact division with inquiries. It’s not particularly approachable or responsive, but patience is key here.
This funder does like to be collaborative. It tends to work with organizations with which it can partner in volunteer projects and/or toy drives, including hospitals and community learning centers. Its international funding tends to support large health initiatives that provide pediatric care to underserved children.
PROFILE: Established in 1978, the Mattel Children’s Foundation operates separately from its parent toy manufacturing company. For decades, the foundation has funded programs that make a “meaningful difference in the lives of children in need around the world.” Its stated funding areas are Create Access to Play, Encourage Education and Well-Being, Prepare the Next Generation and Strengthen Communities. The foundation also awards grants to organizations that help children in need, regardless of whether those services are related to its main areas of grantmaking interest. Mattel’s grantmaking is global in scope, but more than half of all grants remain in the U.S., where the foundation prioritizes organizations in New York, California and Florida.
Grants for Global Development and Global Health
The Mattel Children’s Foundation supports global development and health through its Strengthen Communities program, which supports nonprofits and NGOs working to improve children’s health and well being in 40 countries around the world. Grantmaking aims to improve the lives of children in underserved communities. It is worth mentioning that a significant portion of Mattel’s international work includes employee volunteer hours and donations of toys and learning materials produced by the Mattel company. Past grantees include the Fundación Mexicana de Apoyo Infantil, Greece’s the Smile of the Child and Masoom, a youth organization in Mumbai, India.
Grants for Public Health and Diseases
Mattel’s grantmaking for health and diseases appears to emphasize programs for children who are affected by AIDS, pediatric cancers and juvenile diabetes. The UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital is the primary recipient of Mattel’s health funding. The foundation pledged $25 million toward its construction in 1998, and gave another $50 million to the UCLA Foundation in 2017. According to Mattel, its “support has helped to expand pediatric services in Los Angeles, broaden the hospital’s global presence to enhance and improve the health of children worldwide and promote the global sharing of UCLA Health’s best practices and research.” Other health grantees include Fundacion para Los Ninos de Las Californias, Children’s Health Council, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center and the Northside Center for Child Development, Inc.
Grants for STEM Education and K-12 Education
Mattel supports STEM and K-12 education via its Encourage Education and Well-Being program. The signature initiative in this area is the foundation’s Speedometry program, “a free curriculum offered online to educators, and designed for kindergarten and fourth grade students, that utilizes Hot Wheels cars and tracks to teach the fundamentals of science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics (STEAM).” The program was created through a partnership between Mattel and the University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education. Additional education grantees include the Children’s Scholarship Fund, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Sarasota County and Mercy High School in Burlingame, California.
Grants for Humanitarian and Disaster Relief
Mattel makes its grants for disaster relief through its Strengthen Communities program, which also supports community development, health initiatives and disaster relief worldwide. The program works with “partner organizations domestically and internationally to provide emergency relief funding through the distribution of grants and launch of employee matching gift microsites.” Support here also takes the form of “Mattel-branded play kits to children’s play spaces in temporary shelters.” Past grantees include the American Red Cross, Los Angeles’s Community Services Unlimited and the Children’s Health Council, Inc.
Grants for Housing, Homelessness and Community Development
The Create Access to Play program works to “create meaningful play experiences for children in need […] through […] toy donations, play kits, partnerships with leading organizations and annual Mattel volunteer events.” Through this program, Mattel has supported homeless shelters, youth homes and organizations working with homeless and vulnerable children and families. Mattel’s primary vehicle for product donations is its partnership with Good360, “a global leader in product philanthropy and purposeful giving that partners with socially responsible companies to source highly needed goods and distributes them through its network of diverse nonprofits that support people in need.” Other grantees in this area include the Los Angeles Food Bank and Share Our Strength of Washington.
Grants for Women and Girls
Mattel’s Prepare the Next Generation program supports women and girls through its Barbie Dream Gap Project and its Ruth Handler Mentorship Program. The Dream Gap Project seeks to counteract the self-limiting beliefs many girls develop around the age of five. Previous Dream Gap grantees include Step Up, She Should Run and She’s the First. The Ruth Handler Mentorship Program for Women works to increase women’s “career growth across the toy industry through mentorship, coaching, professional development and learning.” The program is named after Ruth Handler, co-founder and creator of the Barbie brand, and hosts the annual Wonder Women Awards, which recognizes “the brightest women in toys, licensing & entertainment.” Other grantees in the area include Women's Foundation of Arkansas, Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota County, Inc. and The Richstone Center Inc, in Hawthorne, California.
Important Grant Details:
In recent years, the Mattel Children’s Foundation has made between $300,000 and $800,000 a year. Grants have been awarded in amounts of up to $500,000, but the vast majority of Mattel grants are between $1,000 and $5,000. For additional information about past grants, see Mattel’s Philanthropic Progress Report.
The Mattel Children’s Foundation does not unsolicited grant applications, but encourages grantseekers to check its website often for new opportunities that may appear throughout the year. General inquiries may be directed to the foundation via email.
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