As a private foundation, all programs that are administered by The Grass Foundation and that make grants to individuals must have pre-approval by the Internal Revenue Service. Currently, the Grass Fellowship Program at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) is the sole active program of this type administered directly by The Grass Foundation.

In addition to this program, The Grass Foundation currently funds a summer faculty research grant program, a number of courses in neuroscience, and a few lectureships, one of which is the Forbes Lecture at the Marine Biological Laboratory.