Community Foundations

Community foundations are grantmaking public charities that are dedicated to improving the lives of people in a defined local geographic area. They bring together the financial resources of individuals, families, and businesses to support effective nonprofits in their communities. Community foundations vary widely in asset size, ranging from less than $100,000 to more than $1.7 billion.

Community foundations play a key role in identifying and solving community problems. In 2017, they gave an estimated $5.48 billion to a variety of nonprofit activities in fields that included the arts and education, health and human services, the environment, and disaster relief. The Community Foundations National Standards Board confirms operational excellence in six key areas—mission, structure, and governance; resource development; stewardship and accountability; grantmaking and community leadership; donor relations; and communications. Foundations that comply with these standards can display the official National Standards Seal. Currently, over 500 community foundations have earned the seal.

More than 900 community foundations operate in urban and rural areas in every state in the United States; currently, approximately 350 are members of the Council on Foundations. The community foundation model also has taken hold around the world. Community foundations have participated in the growth of international giving by U.S. foundations in recent years, with international giving by community foundations more than tripling, from $103 million in 2011 to $315 million in 2015, and community foundations' share of overall international giving by U.S. foundations more than doubling, from 1.4 percent in 2011 to 3.4 percent in 2015.

You can use our Community Foundation Locator to view a list of community foundations in the United States.

Below is everything on our site for community foundations. We highly recommend that you use the navigation or our search feature to find what you're looking for on our site. Please also visit cof.org/community-foundations for curated community foundation content. 

Farm Aid: How Generosity Builds Family Farms

For generations, America's family farmers have fed this nation, sustained its rural communities and kept alive a way of life rooted in hard work and the land. In the early 1980s, that way of life came under threat. Plummeting land values and rising interest rates drove thousands of farms into…

Philanthropy's Response to the 2026 Earthquakes in Venezuela

OverviewTwo cataclysmic earthquakes hit northern Venezuela on June 24, 2026 - the first 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit San Felipe and the second 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck just three miles north in Yumare. The death toll has risen to over 900 people and nearly 3,000 people injured. These…

Office of Management and Budget's 2026 Proposed Rule Template Comment

Toolkit
[Month XX, 2026]Office Management and BudgetAttention: Office of Federal Financial ManagementDocket ID OMB-2026-0034RIN 0348-AA31RE: Regulation for Federal Financial AssistanceGreetings:On behalf of [insert community foundation], we write to provide comments on the Office of Management and Budget’s…

Office of Management and Budget's 2026 Proposed Rule Comment Guide

Toolkit
BackgroundThe Guidance for Federal Financial Assistance, also known as the Uniform Guidance, governs most federal grantmaking (grants, cooperative agreements, direct appropriations, etc.) to community foundations; other public charities; state, local, and Tribal governments; and other entities.…

Pockets of Hope: Lessons from Working Across Differences

Even after nearly a century of doing good in southeastern Pennsylvania, the Lancaster County Community Foundation (LCCF) was little known in the region. Established in 1924, it had served chiefly as a white-shoe grantmaker, quietly distributing funds from bank trusts. Then, almost 20 years ago…

New Funding Opportunity: Scaling Community Foundation Impact in Working Across Differences

As trusted civic leaders, community foundations are uniquely positioned to bring people together to drive shared progress. To support this vital role as civic leaders, a new grant opportunity launching this summer will help community foundations deepen and expand their impact in working across…

Washington Snapshot: Summary of Proposed Uniform Guidance regulations

In the previous edition of Snapshot, we shared that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released proposed regulations to revise the Uniform Guidance for federal financial assistance. Review our full summary of the proposed regulations and impact on philanthropy. We are preparing to submit…

Our Shared Future: Integrating Approaches to Social Change

During the Council’s recent Building Together conference, the Horizons Project was pleased to present two workshops on our Block, Bridge, Build (BBB) framework. The unseasonally warm sun we enjoyed in Seattle that first week in May was in stark contrast with the stormy skies and tumult felt around…

A Healthy Start for Mom and Baby in Dallas, TX

Healthier moms mean healthier babies. In Texas, The Dallas Foundation is investing $2 million toward that goal so that every child in Dallas County has the strong start they need to thrive.After the infant death rate in Dallas County rose more than 6 percent between 2013 and 2023, the Dallas…

Communicating Around Disaster: A Crisis Communications Workshop September 2026

Our facilitators will draw on real experience — including the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country’s response to the July 2025 Kerr County floods, along with lessons from Uvalde, Texas, the Maine and California wildfires, and the Baltimore Key bridge collapse.Facilitators will walk…

Communicating Around Disaster: A Crisis Communications Workshop July 2026

This workshop draws on real experiences from:July 2025 Kerr County floodsUvalde school shootingMaine and California wildfiresBaltimore bridge collapseFacilitators will walk through a practical framework for building public understanding before a crisis, managing communications in the moment,…

Changing How the World Feeds Itself

For most of his life, John van Hengel had never given much thought to where his next meal was coming from. A successful salesman in California, he'd built a good life. Then, in 1967, circumstances brought him to Phoenix, where he found himself eating at the same soup kitchen where he volunteered.…

Growing Something That Lasts in Lancaster County, PA

Lancaster County, Pennsylvania has some of the most productive farmland in the country. For centuries it has fed families, built communities, and defined this county. Drive a mile or two outside downtown and you'll see it—rolling fields, working farms, and a landscape that has fed this country for…

Council Conferences

At the Council, we approach conferences a little bit differently.  Rather than hosting a traditional annual conference, we convene our community through two distinctly different events, each designed with a specific intention and focus. Together, they reflect how the Council shows up for the…

Proposed Rule: Regulation on Federal Financial Assistance

Last Updated: June 3, 2026OverviewOn May 29, 2026, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued proposed regulations to revise the Uniform Guidance, which governs federal financial assistance across all federal agencies. OMB states that the proposal is intended to improve transparency,…

Bridging Differences Leadership Cohort Alumni Office Hours - September

Bridging Differences Leadership Cohort office hours offer cohort members a space to reflect on their learnings and ask questions about program content. This year, we're excited to open these sessions to cohort alumni. These sessions are an opportunity to reconnect with the program's themes and…
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