The Cosmos Club Foundation was created for the purpose of advancing science, literature, and the arts and humanities to foster academic excellence.
Founded in 1967, the Foundation is committed to advancing human knowledge. With the support of our endowment and generous contributions from Club members and charitable foundations, we are able to fund numerous projects.
The Cosmos Club Foundation is recognized as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. 95% of our expenditures directly support our programs.
The Foundation currently provides funding for three programs:
Cosmos Scholars Prize
The Cosmos Scholars Prize is designed to offer substantial awards to support outstanding postdoctoral scholars. Receive up to $25,000 to advance research and drive innovation in a chosen field.
John P. McGovern Award
The Foundation’s endowment gives two John P. McGovern Awards per year and holds award ceremonies at which the recipients speak about their work. The recognition afforded by these awards rotates between the arts and humanities, literature, and science. Awardees have included Denyce Graves, E.L. Doctorow, Sir Derek Jacobi, Vinton Cerf, Harold Varmus, Christof Eschenbach and Anthony Fauci. Members of the Club and the public are invited to the award ceremonies held at the Cosmos Club.
Cosmos Club Award
From its inception the Foundation has provided an honorarium and certificate for the annual Cosmos Club Award. Recipients have included Sandra Day O’Connor, Frederica von Stade, Philippe de Montebello, John Hope Franklin and David McCullough.