Blog

Community Foundation Update – August 2017

Tuesday, August 8, 2017 - 5:00 pm

Brad Ward

First, a bit of exciting personal news: my family is anticipating the arrival of our second child any day now—thus, I will eventually be on paternity leave until early September. During this time, I will have an away message with an array of ways for you to connect with the right person.

We are eagerly finalizing the details of our first-ever North American Community Foundations Summit taking place in Mexico City on February 5-7, 2018.

Some have asked, why is this not in the States?

With ample U.S.-based CF conferences scheduled for 2018—such as the AdNet, CommA, and ProNet affinity groups hosting a joint conference in Las Vegas in the spring and the Growing Community Foundation Conference in Wichita in the fall—and based on the success of gathering a global audience at the 2014 Fall Conference in Cleveland, the time was right to connect to our broader North American network of community foundations on their home turf.

Add in the critical conversational dynamics taking shape in our own country around immigration, trade, skilled workforces, and a shared reality of vulnerable populations becoming less mobile and the opportunity gap growing, this external lens on local matters will evoke an awe-inspiring vantage point to tackle critical issues impacting all of us.

What's in store for 2018?

The Council will be hosting several summits across the country—Public Policy, HR, CEO Retreat, and Endowments and Finance. As well, several in-person, national convening events:

Legal Matters and Asset Development for Community Foundations
Center for Community Foundation Excellence—Fundamentals and Finance
Economic Prosperity and the Impact of Community Philanthropy

Ample opportunities to connect our diverse membership and leverage our national platform to ensure community foundations are leading the way. If you have specific questions about the assortment of events for next year, including considerations for your budget, do not hesitate to contact me.

As always, thanks for all you do for driving community philanthropy!

Regards,
Brad Ward
Director, Community Philanthropy

Save the Date | 2018
North American Community Foundations Summit

Co-hosted by the Community Foundations of Canada and Comunalia in Mexico

Will explore shared challenges such as
- Education, health, economic development, and immigration; the evolving roles that we all play in building resilient communities; and emerging opportunities.
Council members extended discounted registration of $450 per person
- Registration for NACF will open in fall 2017.
- A limited number of travel scholarships will be available.

Please save the date for the first-ever North American Community Foundations Summit taking place in Mexico City February 5-7, 2018! We'll be reaching out to community foundation presidents and CEOs later this week with a formal save-the-date.

Share your ideas or questions, email us
Be the first to know when registration opens, click here
Learn more about sponsorships opportunities

Join our Transforming Scholarship Programs Webinar

The Council is partnering with National College Access Network (NCAN) to explore key findings from a recent white paper published by NCAN on the surprising opportunities to scholarship programs that provide a greater student impact and deeper donor commitment. Join our legal team, NCAN, and director of community philanthropy as we explore how community foundations are streamlining scholarship administration, managing new approaches to scholarship impact, and attracting new donor dollars.

Prepare for #CFWeek (Nov 12-18)

November 12-18, 2017, marks the 28th annual Community Foundation Week—created in 1989 by former president George H.W. Bush—and celebrates the 103rd year of community foundations as a force for change in our country. We have several resources for you to promote and celebrate #CFWeek.

As well, members of the House of Representatives and Senate can read statements into the Congressional Record in order to express their support for causes and events that are important to their constituents. We encourage you to reach out to your Members' offices and request that they submit a statement for the Congressional Record to acknowledge Community Foundations Week.