OVERVIEW: The Simons Foundation is one of the country’s largest foundations devoted entirely to science and math research. Simons funds autism research, the life sciences and physics and math research.
IP TAKE: Simons awards hundreds of grants each year in specific areas of math, physics and life sciences. The foundation accepts applications for funding, but guidelines and eligibility vary according to program.
The Simons are likely to continue their philanthropic work in the fields of research and education. While the Simons Foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funding, it posts RFPs on its funding opportunities page.
The Simons Foundation makes several grants, holds open calls for applications, and gives multi-year support for researchers without too many strings attached. With funding well over $100 million annually, it has become one of the most influential research foundations in the world.
PROFILE: Established in 1994 by Jim and Marilyn Simons, the Simons Foundation seeks to "advance the frontiers of research in mathematics and the basic sciences." Simons earned his Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of California, Berkeley at 23 years old. He then worked with the Department of Defense, teaching at MIT and Harvard before becoming chair of the math department at Stony Brook University. He left academia in 1978 to apply his expertise to finance and launched Renaissance Technologies in 1982. Renaissance was among the first funds to use quantitative models for trading. It remains one of the most successful funds in the history of investing. Past Simons grantmaking has deeply impacted various fields, including autism research. The foundation conducts groundbreaking scientific research, "undertaken in pursuit of understanding the phenomena of our world." This funder’s areas of giving include mathematics and physical sciences, life sciences and autism research.
Grants for Science Research
The Simons Foundation supports science research through its mathematics and physical sciences and life sciences programs. In the areas of mathematics and physical sciences, it runs several signature fellowships and grant programs for scholars and researchers at all stages of their careers The foundation also awards institutional support for research and grants for collaborative research in the foundation’s areas of interest. The foundation’s life science grants aim “to advance basic research on fundamental questions in biology.” Recent areas of interest include the origins of life, the study of the ecology and evolution of microbes.
The Simons Foundation launched the Flatiron Institute in order to advance “scientific research through computational methods, including data analysis, theory, modeling and simulation.” The institute works to develop “new conceptual, algorithmic and computational methods and bring them to bear on important scientific issues. The institute provides a highly interactive research environment for physicists, biologists, astronomers, neuroscientists, chemists, computational scientists, data scientists and programmers to work together to create, deploy, apply and support state-of-the-art computational methods.”
In early 2023, Simons announced that it will award more than $1.2 million in support to 405 Ukrainian mathematicians, biologists, physicists and chemists who remain in Ukraine and continue “to conduct their research in the face of Russian bombings, failing power grids, internet disruptions and shattered windows.”
Additionally, in June 2023, the foundation gave Stony Brook University, where Simons previously served as chair of the Math Department, a $500 million endowment gift, the largest unrestricted donation to an institution of higher education in United States history. The Simons Foundation has committed more than $1.2 billion to Stony Brook over the years, much of that supporting science and medical research.
Grants for Marine and Freshwater Conservation
The foundation's ocean research program is called Simons Collaboration on Ocean Processes and Ecology (SCOPE). SCOPE seeks to "measure, model and predict the pathways and exchanges (inputs and outputs) of energy and matter within and between specific microbial groups and their environment at relevant spatial and temporal scales, from surface waters to the deep sea (more than 4 km in depth) at Station ALOHA." Based at the University of Hawaii, Station ALOHA refers to a section of the ocean about 60 miles north of Oahu that is representative of a large part of the North Pacific Ocean.
Grants for Diseases
The Simons Foundation supports research into the causes, diagnosis, and treatment of autism through the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative (SFARI), which makes grants to support “bold, imaginative and rigorous research.” Its main funding opportunities are the Research and Pilot Awards and the Bridge to Independence Award. Research Awards support research into “key unresolved research questions in autism,” especially those that “connect etiology to brain function and behavior.” These awards prioritize research with the greatest possible impact on the field. Pilot Awards provide “early support for exploratory ideas, particularly those with novel hypotheses for autism.”
Grants for STEM Education
The Simons Foundation’s Outreach and Education initiatives further the foundation’s mission by “disseminating scientific knowledge,” “engaging individuals in the process of science,” and “promoting opportunities for learning science and math concepts.” Its Science Sandbox supports a wide range of outreach programs that “bring science to the people, tell science stories in innovative ways, and make science relevant to everyday life.” It funds Quanta Magazine, a publication dedicated to making breakthroughs and news in science and mathematics accessible and engaging to the public. It is also a supporter of Math for America, a network of math and science teachers dedicated to bringing increased funding, support, and innovative pedagogy to classrooms across the country.
Important Grant Details:
Simons Foundation grants range from a few thousand to over $1 million dollars, with many grants in the $100,000 to $500,000 range. For specific information about past grantees and the types of projects funded, see Simons’ annual report.
This funder accepts applications for funding, but guidelines, eligibility and due dates vary by program. For upcoming awards, see the foundation’s funding opportunities page.
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