Barry & Marie Lipman Family Prize 2027: A $300,000 Grand Prize Plus Two $150,000 Awards and a Wharton Partnership for High-Impact Nonprofits

Barry & Marie Lipman Family Prize 2027: A $300,000 Grand Prize Plus Two $150,000 Awards and a Wharton Partnership for High-Impact Nonprofits

The Barry & Marie Lipman Family Prize is an annual global prize awarded by the University of Pennsylvania. The program, based at Penn and connected to the Wharton School, recognizes nonprofit, NGO, and civil-society organizations working on globally relevant social challenges. Its stated emphasis is on leadership, innovation, impact, and the ability for others in the social impact sector to learn from and adapt the organization’s practices.

The 2027 application period is closed, but the published selection process is still underway. Penn’s official program page says the application is closed and thanks the organizations that submitted. The published dates for that round were July 1, 2026, when the online application opened, and July 31, 2026, the submission deadline. The published selection calendar continues through the April 2027 announcement of the grand prize winner. The official prize page gives no opening date or deadline for a later application round. Treat this page as a historical record of the closed application and a planning reference, not as an open call. Check the official program website before preparing or sending an application for a future round.

For the 2027 cycle, three organizations were to receive awards: one grand prize of $300,000 in unrestricted cash and two additional prizes of $150,000 each in unrestricted cash. All three winners also receive non-cash benefits through the Penn partnership. The sections below summarize the official program’s award, eligibility requirements, application materials, and selection stages as published for the 2027 cycle. Because a later round may change its details, use its own application notice if one is announced.

2027 cycle details

The prize is designed to support organizations whose approaches have demonstrated value and whose learning may help other organizations. The application framework asks applicants to explain the social challenge they address, the way their model works, what distinguishes that model, how they assess impact, and how knowledge or practices can be shared with the broader social impact community.

Award and partnership

The cash awards are unrestricted. The grand prize organization receives $300,000, while each of the other two winners receives $150,000. The official prize overview says all three winners receive the same set of non-monetary benefits in addition to the different cash amounts.

Those benefits include an ongoing partnership with the University of Pennsylvania, with opportunities to draw on university resources and relationships to help scale work or improve organizational sustainability. The prize also promotes winners’ work and accomplishments and supports network development within the Lipman Prize community and the broader Penn network. Winners gain access to tuition-free executive education programs at Wharton Executive Education and the Center for Social Impact Strategy; the program values this benefit at approximately $15,000. The Lipman Nonprofit Leadership Scholarship, offered in partnership with Penn’s School of Social Policy and Practice, is valued at approximately $10,000.

The prize therefore combines flexible financial support with continued connections and learning opportunities. Those non-cash elements are part of the award package, but their exact fit depends on the organization and people involved. The official description frames the partnership as a way to develop and share knowledge with the wider social impact community. Applicants considering a future round should review the prize’s current pages for any revised descriptions or conditions.

Who could apply in 2027

The official eligibility criteria describe a program for nonprofit, NGO, and civil-society organizations that address globally relevant issues. Organizations may operate anywhere in the world, and they do not need to work outside their home country to be considered. Applicants had to meet all the published threshold requirements:

• Legal status: Hold nonprofit status in the United States or equivalent legal status in the organization’s home country. The FAQ specifies that U.S. organizations must be recognized as tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3). Organizations registered in another country must comply with that country’s registration requirements. Current registration documentation is requested during Phase 2.
• Operating history: Have operated as a nonprofit organization for at least three years.
• Evidence of results: Monitor and evaluate the organization’s work and have impact results available for at least three years.
• Financial scale: Maintain a three-year average of annual operating expenses between $500,000 and $5 million USD. This is an average across three years, rather than a test of only the latest fiscal year. The FAQ says applicants with circumstances that place them above the ceiling may explain those circumstances in the eligibility form for review; an exception is not automatic.
• Organizational purpose and conduct: Not operate primarily to redistribute funds to other organizations or individuals; not engage in direct lobbying to influence legislation or elections; not deliver programs with religious content; and not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, age, or disability.

The prize also reviews potential conflicts of interest because it is awarded by Penn. Organizations with direct existing relationships involving university departments, staff, students, or faculty are asked to contact the prize team to assess eligibility. The official page distinguishes those relationships from alumni or former staff and faculty serving an applicant organization in a professional or volunteer capacity. Organizations unsure about a possible conflict were advised to contact the program directly.

Previous Lipman Family Prize winners cannot reapply, and organizations directly affiliated with past awardees are ineligible. The official site also says semi-finalists from the prior application year must wait at least one year before reapplying; other organizations may apply annually. A program within a larger organization could apply only if it could act independently throughout the process, document distinct operations, finances, and identity, represent itself in review, and accept and manage an award independently.

What the application asked organizations to explain

The first phase used an online application. According to Penn’s description, it collected a basic organizational profile and financial information along with brief essay responses. The essay themes give a useful, source-grounded picture of what the prize wanted to understand:

1. Social challenge: Explain the problem the organization addresses in the places where it works and why that problem has broader relevance.
2. Model description: Describe what the organization does and how it responds to the challenge it identified.
3. Model differentiation: Explain what is distinctive about its approach or practices compared with other responses to the same issue.
4. Impact measurement: Describe its monitoring and evaluation process and provide impact data that show how it assesses the model’s effectiveness.
5. Transferability: Explain its experience and approach to sharing knowledge, skills, and assets for the benefit of the wider social impact community.

Applicants also supplied specific financial data and organizational details through the online system. The official FAQ says that organizations selected for further consideration were notified in September and asked for additional documentation. Phase 2 materials could include financial information, evaluation tools, strategic plans, business plans, and information about staff leadership and the board of directors. The exact request was made to selected organizations; not every document listed should be treated as an initial application upload requirement.

The official FAQ says all application materials are treated as confidential. Applications had to be submitted electronically; mailed applications were not reviewed. An incomplete application at the deadline would not be reviewed or considered. Since the 2027 window has closed, these steps are historical guidance only. Any future applicant should rely on the instructions and document list supplied with a newly announced round.

Selection process and published timeline

The program described four main phases. In the initial open application round, trained reviewers from the Lipman Prize community assessed submissions using a quantitative framework centered on leadership, impact, innovation, and transferability. Penn’s published 2027 dates said applicants would be notified in September 2026 about progression to the Top 24–40 group.

During Phase 2, selected organizations supplied existing documentation for due diligence. The Lipman team guided graduate student fellows through research and review, and financial advisors partnered with the program to review submitted financial information. The published calendar said Phase 2 ended in December 2026, when applicants were to be notified about selection for the semi-finalist round. The process description says twelve organizations are selected as semi-finalists.

In Phase 3, semi-finalists were asked for final-round information, including a low-production two-to-three-minute video statement from the organization’s executive leader. Responses were due within a period specified in the notification. Fellows presented semi-finalists to a Prize Committee comprising Lipman family members, Penn faculty, and experienced external social impact professionals. The official dates listed Phase 3 ending in February 2027, when winners were selected and announced.

In Phase 4, the three winning organizations’ executive leaders and board chairs or members participated in a virtual interview with the Prize Committee in March. The committee selected the grand prize winner from among the three winners. Winners were expected to attend the annual award ceremony in Philadelphia in April; the program said it would cover travel and hotel for one organizational representative. The official calendar listed April 2027 for the public announcement of the grand prize winner.

These are the dates and process published for the closed 2027 round. They are included to document what applicants were told, not to imply that an application or selection step remains open. The official program page is the authority for any later schedule.

Reading the evaluation criteria

The prize names four qualities: leadership, impact, innovation, and transferability. The official descriptions connect these to an organization’s model and evidence. Leadership concerns sustainable approaches and the ability to offer solutions that could be adapted. Impact concerns proof of concept and readiness to use the prize as a catalyst for growth. Innovation concerns a differentiated approach to a pressing problem. Transferability asks whether others in the social impact sector can learn from and adapt the organization’s insights, models, or practices.

The FAQ adds that reviewers consider understanding of the social challenge, clarity of the program model, innovation, impact and its measurement, and commitment to share knowledge and collaborate. Later due diligence may assess organizational sustainability, learning capacity, supporting evidence or research, leadership and governance, financial information, and public records. This means an applicant’s narrative needs to be consistent with the organization’s underlying records. Claims about outcomes should be supported by the monitoring and evaluation data requested in the application, and the explanation of transferability should be concrete enough for reviewers to understand what another organization could learn or adapt.

Historical reference and preparation

The 2027 deadline was July 31, 2026. Penn’s official page now labels that application closed. No later round is announced on the official program pages reviewed for this update, so the page does not supply a future deadline or present the old portal as open. The 2027 eligibility rules, award amounts, and timeline above describe that cycle and may change in a future announcement.

Organizations using this page for planning can still take practical lessons from the published application structure. First, assemble a clear account of the social challenge and the local setting in which it appears. Then describe the operating model in terms that distinguish activities from the change those activities are intended to produce. Gather the impact results available across the required three-year period, and ensure the evaluation method is understandable to someone outside the organization. These preparations reflect the themes the 2027 application asked applicants to address; they do not guarantee eligibility or selection in another round.

It is also useful to calculate the three-year operating expense average carefully, verify registration status, and identify any potential Penn relationship that should be raised with the prize team. Keep core financial and governance records organized because selected applicants may be asked for additional due-diligence documentation. If the organization depends on a parent entity, clarify whether it can provide distinct information, take part independently in review, and manage an award on its own. Before drafting essays or committing substantial time, compare these points with the requirements announced for the actual round.

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2027 application still open? No. The official prize site says the 2027 application is closed. Its published deadline was July 31, 2026.

What were the 2027 cash awards? One organization was to receive $300,000 in unrestricted cash, and two additional organizations were to receive $150,000 each. The three winners also receive non-monetary benefits through the Penn partnership.

Could organizations outside the United States apply? Yes. The prize accepts organizations working anywhere in the world if they hold nonprofit or equivalent legal status in their home country and meet the other criteria.

What financial range applied? The three-year average of annual operating expenses had to be between $500,000 and $5 million USD. Applicants with unusual circumstances above the ceiling could explain them in the eligibility form for review, according to the FAQ.

What was submitted in Phase 1? Applicants submitted an online application with organizational and financial information and brief essays about their social challenge, model, differentiation, impact measurement, and transferability. Incomplete applications were not reviewed.

What happened after the initial application? Selected organizations were asked to provide additional due-diligence material. Later stages included semi-finalist information and a short video statement, followed by a virtual interview for the three winners during grand prize selection.

Has a later application round been announced? The official program pages reviewed for this entry continue to show the closed 2027 round and do not provide later application dates. Check the official website for a new announcement rather than relying on a date inferred from the program’s annual pattern.

Official source

Use the University of Pennsylvania’s About the Prize page for the award details, eligibility criteria, process, and 2027 dates. Its FAQ page explains online submission, additional materials, budget averaging, and review. Both are official Lipman Family Prize pages. This entry preserves the 2027 cycle as an archive; it is not an application form or notice of an open round.