where do we begin?
The Tow Foundation was established in 1988 by Leonard and Claire Tow as a way to give back to the communities that shaped them.
Leonard and Claire’s three children, Andrew, Emily and Frank, joined the board of directors soon after its inception, and our initial investments were largely guided by the personal passions of the boardroom. With a focus on New York, our earliest grants went to innovative projects in the fields of medical research and higher education.
As our organization evolved, so did our areas of support. Emily Tow was hired as the Foundation’s president and first full-time staff member in 1995. Motivated by the belief that every child deserves an opportunity to thrive, our grantmaking expanded to include nonprofits with a focus on youth justice. As the years went by, the transformative power of theater and performing arts led us to add culture as a core area of interest.
- Today, our five primary impact areas are arts and culture, higher education, civic engagement, equity and justice and medicine and public health.