Samberg Family Foundation

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OVERVIEW: The Samberg Family Foundation supports children and youth and Jewish causes. Since 2021 it has conducted its grantmaking through Blue Meridian Partners.

IP TAKE: The Samberg Family Foundation joined Blue Meridian Partners in 2021 with the goal of having a greater impact in its grantmaking for children and youth. It has also indicated that it intends to spend down its assets over the next several years. Blue Meridian mainly supports large, national organizations with budgets of over $1 million. It does not accept unsolicited proposals, but organizations that meet eligibility criteria may complete an interest survey at the organization’s website.

PROFILE: The Samberg Family Foundation was established in 1995 by Rebecca and Arthur Samberg. Arthur Samberg, who passed away in 2020, was the founder and CEO of Pequot Capital Management. The foundation aims to “help families reach their full potential” and focused its past grantmaking on children, youth and Jewish causes.

In 2016, the Samberg Family Foundation joined the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation and others in the establishment of Blue Meridian Partners, a collaborative philanthropic endeavor aiming to make a large impact on the lives of children living in poverty in the United States. Since 2021, this funder’s grantmaking has been conducted entirely through Blue Meridian Partners.

Grants for Early Childhood and K-12 Education

Since 2021, the Samberg Family Foundation’s grantmaking has taken place through Blue Meridian Partners. Blue Meridian invests in “a mix of strategies that help ensure individuals reach key success milestones from cradle to career and overcome challenges that create barriers to opportunity.” It supports established organizations with budgets of over $1 million.

Grantees include the Zero to Three National Center for Infants Toddlers and Families, the Harlem Children’s Zone, Equal Opportunity Schools and Start Early of Chicago.

Grants for Mental Health

Samberg’s giving for mental health is also conducted through Blue Meridian Partners. Mental health grants focus on underserved and low-income children and families.

Grantees include Chicago’s Youth Guidance and Youth Villages, Inc., a national organization that works in 26 states to help “children and families live successfully.”

Grants for Public Health

The Samberg Family Foundation’s past grantmaking linked health to poverty and included support for maternal and children’s health initiatives. Continuing this work through Blue Meridian, grants have provided ongoing support to the Nurse-Family Partnership, a national program through which new mothers and their children receive regular at-home care and check-ins.

Grants for Jewish Causes

The Samberg Family Foundation’s past grants for Jewish causes went to “select programs of Jewish history, culture and community that foster connections to Jewish life at different points along individuals’ lives.” Blue Meridian has not made grants to Jewish causes recently, so it is unclear if Samberg continues to conduct its giving in this area.

The two main beneficiaries of Samberg’s Jewish grantmaking were Birthright Israel and the United Jewish Federation of New York. Smaller organizations to receive funding included Teach for All – Israel, YRF Darca, and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Important Grant Details:

Since its collaboration with Blue Meridian, it is difficult to tease out dollar amounts of support that Samberg provides to its grantees.

  • Grantmaking continues to focus on the education and well being of underserved young people in the U.S.

  • Blue Meridian’s grantmaking goes to large, national organizations with budgets of over $1 million.

  • The Samberg Foundation has indicated that it is spending down its endowment, but it is unclear how much longer its collaboration with Blue Meridian will continue.

  • Blue Meridian does not accept applications for funding, but organizations that meet its criteria for funding may complete an interest survey at the organization’s website.

The Samberg Family Foundation may be contacted via its contact page or by telephone at (703) 351-9405.

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