OVERVIEW: The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Foundation is a Chicago family foundation that supports education, health and rehabilitation, arts and culture, Catholic institutions, children and youth, and other civic and charitable causes. Grantmaking is heavily concentrated in Chicago and Illinois, although the foundation also supports organizations elsewhere in the U.S.
IP TAKE: Although Patrick and Shirley Ryan are one of Chicago’s prominent philanthropic power couples, they prefer to keep their grantmaking fairly low-key. It does not have a website or public application portal, and its latest tax filing says that it only makes contributions to preselected organizations and does not accept unsolicited applications. Grantseekers should not spend much time looking for a hidden RFP or sending a cold proposal. Instead, this is a relationship-driven funder where a warm introduction through a current grantee, trustee or institution in the Ryan family’s established networks is likely the most realistic route to consideration.
The foundation’s giving is broader than its best-known institutional relationships might suggest. Recent grants support rehabilitation and medical care, K-12 education and school leadership, Catholic schools and churches, arts and cultural institutions, youth organizations and civic nonprofits. Still, a handful of longstanding relationships receive unusually large grants. In 2024, for example, the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab received about $5.5 million, while the median foundation grant was $25,000. Grantseekers should therefore avoid treating the foundation’s largest awards as representative of a typical grant.
PROFILE: The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Foundation was established in Illinois in 1984. Patrick G. Ryan built his fortune in the insurance industry. In 1982, Ryan Insurance Group merged with Combined International Corporation, an important step in the development of what became Aon. Ryan later founded Ryan Specialty in 2010. Ryan Specialty should not be confused with Ryan Insurance Group, as the former did not exist at the time of the 1982 merger.
Shirley Ryan has long been involved in rehabilitation, disability and early-childhood development. She helped establish Pathways.org, which provides resources on infant development and early detection of developmental delays. Pathways.org became an affiliate of Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in 2017. Patrick retired in 2008 to focus on Chicago’s bid attempt for the 2016 Olympics. Since then, Ryan’s companies have been expanding and acquiring groups like Atlantic Star Intermediaries and the United Kingdom’s Direct Group.
The foundation does not publish formal program areas or grant guidelines. The funding areas below reflect patterns in recent grants and public records rather than named foundation programs.
Grants for K-12 Education and Youth
Education is a significant area of Ryan Foundation giving, particularly in Chicago. Recent grants suggest strong interest in school leadership, values-based and Catholic education, charter schools and opportunities for young people.
- One of the foundation’s largest recent education grants went to Big Shoulders Fund, which received $1.2 million in 2024 for general charitable operations. Big Shoulders supports schools serving children in Chicago and Northwest Indiana through scholarships, academic programs, school operations and leadership development.
- Accelerate Institute received $775,000 in 2024. Accelerate develops school leaders and works with schools and school systems. Pat Ryan Jr. is the organization’s founder and board chair. His work in education also led him to establish Alain Locke Charter School on Chicago’s West Side. The foundation gave Alain Locke $150,000 in 2024.
- Other recent education and youth grantees include After School Matters, which received $50,000 in 2024 to support its work with Chicago teens.
- Grantseekers working in K-12 education appear best positioned when they have strong Chicago ties and align with the Ryan family’s established interests in school leadership, student opportunity or values-based education. The foundation does not publish a formal geographic or school-model restriction.
Beyond the couple’s foundation, the Patrick and Shirley Ryan are also major Northwestern University benefactors. Northwestern announced a $480 million Ryan Family gift in 2021, supporting research, education and athletics.
Grants for Health, Rehabilitation and Medical Research
Health giving is anchored by the Ryan family’s longstanding involvement in rehabilitation and medical research.
- The foundation’s largest reported grant in 2024 was approximately $5.54 million to Shirley Ryan AbilityLab for “charitable for high quality care.” The hospital specializes in physical medicine and rehabilitation, including care and research involving stroke, spinal cord injury, brain injury, pediatric rehabilitation and other conditions.
- Shirley Ryan AbilityLab was previously known as the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, so these names should not be treated as two separate current institutions when reviewing historical grants.
- The foundation also makes smaller health and disability-related grants. Recent recipients include Access Living, which received $25,000 for general charitable operations, as well as organizations addressing childhood cancer and other health needs.
- Ryan-family philanthropy also supports biomedical research at Northwestern University. The Pat & Shirley Ryan Family Research Acceleration Fund provides seed funding for Northwestern faculty working to move promising life-sciences research toward translation and commercialization. In August 2026, Northwestern announced more than $2.1 million in a new round of awards, bringing the fund’s total support to more than $10.9 million across 41 projects. This is an internal Northwestern research opportunity, not an open grant program for outside nonprofits, and it should be distinguished from the Ryan Foundation’s regular grantmaking.
- Historical grantees include The Brain Research Foundation and Pathways, which “provides free tools to maximize all children’s motor, sensory, and communication development.”
Grants for Arts and Culture
The Ryan Foundation is a longstanding supporter of Chicago arts and cultural institutions.
- Recent grants include $450,000 to the Lyric Opera of Chicago in 2024, with the grant described in tax records as supporting the continuation of the art form. Chicago Shakespeare Theater received $20,000 for general charitable operations, while Adler Planetarium received $35,000.
- The Ryans also have longstanding personal and institutional ties to Chicago cultural organizations. Grantseekers in this space should note that much of the foundation’s arts giving goes to established institutions with existing Ryan-family relationships. There is no evidence of a public arts application process.
Grants for Catholic and Religious Causes
Roman Catholic churches and schools are another recurring funding interest. Roman Catholic churches and schools are among the foundation’s primary giving interests.
- The foundation gave $50,000 to the Archdiocese of Chicago in 2024 for support of the Catholic faith. Its substantial support of Big Shoulders Fund also overlaps with this interest, as Big Shoulders works extensively with values-based and Catholic schools serving Chicago and Northwest Indiana.
- Recent and historical grant records also show support for individual Catholic schools, churches and Catholic institutions. Organizations in this area appear to benefit from longstanding family and institutional relationships rather than an open religious-grant program.
Other Grantmaking
The Ryan Foundation also supports a range of Chicago civic, community and human-services organizations. Recent grantees include the 100 Club of Chicago, American Red Cross of Chicago and Northern Illinois and other local nonprofits.
- A particularly important recent grantee is the R.I.S.E. Opportunity Foundation, which received $1 million in 2024. Patrick and Shirley Ryan initiated R.I.S.E. following the events of 2020. The organization works to increase representation of underrepresented communities in risk management and insurance careers through career-readiness programming, financial education, mentoring, internships and related support for high school and college students.
- R.I.S.E. is a separate nonprofit organization, not simply a program or grantmaking arm of the Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Foundation. Nonprofits should not treat R.I.S.E. as an intermediary or alternate application route to the Ryan Foundation.
Important Grant Details
The foundation held approximately $108.8 million in assets at the end of 2024 and reported approximately $12.94 million in charitable disbursements for the year. Its 2024 Form 990-PF was filed in November 2025.
- Tax-return data indicate that the foundation made 89 grants in 2024, with a median grant of $25,000 and awards ranging from about $1,000 to $5.5 million. Because a few very large grants skew the average upward, the median is a better guide to a typical award.
- Chicago and Illinois organizations dominate the recent portfolio, but the foundation does make grants outside the state. There is no published rule limiting funding exclusively to Illinois.
- General operating support is common. Many grants in the foundation’s tax records are described as support for “general charitable operations.”
- The foundation does not accept unsolicited applications. Its latest tax filing indicates that it only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations.
- The best way to get in touch with the foundation is by phone at 312-893-6600.
- Contact: Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Foundation, 150 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 2100, Chicago, IL 60601, 312-893-6600
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