William McCaskey Chapman & Adaline Dinsmore Chapman Foundation

The William McCaskey & Adaline Dinsmore Chapman Foundation is a private foundation making grants for a variety of K-12 educational purposes to nonprofit organizations serving young people from the coastal communities of Monterey County, California.  

No grants are made to individuals. Eligible organizations must be providing benefits to students from the coastal communities of Monterey County, California. This includes Marina, Seaside, Presidio of Monterey and Annex, Del Rey Oaks, Sand City, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Carmel Valley, Big Sur, and unincorporated areas within the geographical area defined by these communities. The Foundation's support is intended for students who have demonstrated motivation to prepare themselves to succeed in college.

The Foundation was created through the generosity of Adaline Dinsmore Chapman, who formed it in 1983 to help deserving students obtain educational opportunities they would not otherwise have. She created the foundation to carry out in perpetuity the practice that she and her late husband, William McCaskey Chapman, followed during their lifetime; that of helping motivated students in their pursuit of educational excellence.

Although the Chapmans had no children of their own, they loved young people, and offered financial assistance to them for their education. Colonel Chapman was reared in Pacific Grove and was posted to the Presidio of Monterey.  He was active in the community, and served as Mayor of Pacific Grove.  Upon her death Mrs. Chapman left the majority of her $10 million dollar estate to the Foundation. Since that time the Foundation has distributed over $10 million dollars to  more than 125 local programs.

Grants include scholarship funding, academic program support in public and private schools, extra-curricular education in the arts, and a variety of special academic programs. Grants are made to both public and private schools, and other tax exempt organizations offering appropriate educational opportunities.