Mellon at a glance

1969

Founded

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation was established by Ailsa Mellon Bruce and Paul Mellon, the children of Andrew W. Mellon.

Learn about our history 

$8B

Total endowment

Grantmaking across all areas supports ideas and organizations that contribute to a more connected, creative, and just society.

Read about our mission 

360

Grantees in 2021

Mellon actively works with our grantee partners, and we are deeply immersed in the fields in which we invest.

See a list of recipients 

$510M+

Awarded in 2021

Grantmaking across all areas supports ideas and organizations that contribute to a more connected, creative, and just society.

See grantmaking areas 
In the news
June 06, 2023
Mellon Announces Over $5M in Funding for Higher Education in Prisons
Read the news 
May 31, 2023
US Latinx Art Forum Announces New Latinx Artist Fellows
Read the news 
May 23, 2023
Haymarket Books Launches Writing Freedom Fellowship Program for System-Impacted Creative Writers
Read the news 
May 03, 2023
New Investments for More Diverse Leadership in Art Museums
Read the news 
February 15, 2023
“Imagining Freedom”: Supporting Creatives & Thinkers Reenvisioning the Criminal Legal System
Read the news 

View all news

Explore Ideas
  • Artists as Catalysts Navigation Image
    Artists as Catalysts
  • A side profile of a Black poet who is wearing glasses and a hat with a feather hat pin.
    Beyond Incarceration
  • Civic engagement navigation image - A large crowd of people who are far away and anonymous
    Civic Engagement
  • A vertical image of an Indigenous person who is sitting on a chair in front of a backdrop.
    Evolving Higher Education
  • Expanding Public Knowledge Navigation Image
    Expanding Public Knowledge
  • A large statue of a confederate general is covered in markings and graffiti.
    Monuments and Memory
  • Five people stand together in a group photo. They are laughing and smiling.
    Multivocality
  • Five colorful neon signs hang on the wall with messages that include, "Freedom cannot wait," "Brown owned," and "America is for Dreamers."
    Power of the Word
  • A group of Indigenous Maskoke people stand and sit in the wooden frame of a structure in a woods
    Public Places‚ Public Stories
  • In a vertical image, a black leather vest is adorned with colorful pins across the front of it. Embroidery on the vest reads: "Felícitas "La Prieta" Méndez"
    Puerto Rico and Its Diaspora
  • Two scholars dressed in all black face the camera.
    University Everywhere

Get news about what we are supporting and more by subscribing to our newsletter.

By subscribing, you agree to Mellon Foundation's Privacy Policy.

  • Contact
  • News
  • Events
  • Careers
  • Policies
  • Press Room
  • Terms of Use
  • Annual Report
© 2023 The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation