The Coleman Foundation, Inc. is a private, independent foundation established in the state of Illinois in 1951. The source of the endowment was the estates of Dorothy W. and J.D. Stetson Coleman.

Upon becoming fully endowed in 1981, the Foundation's Board of Directors conducted an aggressive grantmaking campaign that intentionally far exceeded the established requirements for giving and allowed recipients to participate and benefit from the endowment's additional growth. These efforts advanced significant programs in the Foundation's main areas of interest; entrepreneurship awareness education, cancer research, care and treatment, housing and education for the handicapped, and diverse educational programs.

The Colemans were committed entrepreneurs who cared enough to voluntarily return value to society. It was their consistent desire to make the community aware of opportunities which could improve quality of life. They chose to set up this Foundation to assure the continuation of these efforts beyond the conclusion of their own lives. The Directors firmly expect that all recipients will share in this commitment and respond with meaningful programs which offer something truly beneficial to the community and society at large.

The Directors further developed the Foundation's role and expanded its vision to incorporate funding cancer research, a reality which touched the lives of the Colemans, and education programs for the profoundly disabled.

As established by the Board, the goal of the Foundation’s grantmaking activities is to create change by supporting practical, financially sustainable, results-oriented initiatives.