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. 

Independent Sector and charitable allies urge House to pass America Gives More Act of 2015

This legislation includes several important provisions that will help charitable and philanthropic organizations serving communities in every Congressional District across the country. Specifically, H.R. 644 would permanently enact three temporary and currently expired giving incentives – the IRA…

Community Foundations Can Help Families Through Policy Efforts

Low-income families typically have few options for emergency cash, forcing many to rely on high-cost payday loans for unexpected financial needs. But these loans, which are disproportionately marketed to low-income and minority communities, lead to repeated cash shortages that drive consumers to…

Webinar: Philanthropy Exchange Walk-Through

Are you having trouble with the Exchange? Have no fear! I'm here to help. This webinar covered how to post, search the libraries, and find other members. It's an easy way to get to know this new platform and learn all the great things it has to offer. If you have questions, take a look at…

Interview with Emily Kessler, Interim Director of EPIP

I recently had the opportunity to interview Emily Kessler, the interim director of Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy. In this interview, Emily shares how she got her start in philanthropy and what she is hoping to do to help emerging professionals and increase the value of an EPIP membership…

Federal Liaisons

The Council’s Philanthropic Engagement Liaisons in the Executive Branch Since November 2011, the Public-Philanthropic Partnership Office in the Council’s Public Policy Department has hosted a quarterly meeting with a cadre of staff from various federal departments and agencies. The…

How Foundations can Help Entrepreneurs Save the American Dream

Last week, the Milstein Commission, a national initiative co-chaired by Steve Case and Carly Fiorina, released a report, Can Startups Save the American Dream? The report  highlighted over how the past quarter-century, startups and small businesses accounted for 65% of net job creation, yet…

Center for Community Foundation Excellence Fundamentals

A well-trained staff and a well-informed board are crucial to community foundation success in a fast-changing world. This two-day course helps new and experienced foundation stakeholders build essential skills they need. Created and led by experienced leaders, this course includes: Updates on key…

Policy Issues

The policy issues that impact philanthropy are wide-ranging. Our issue pages include the latest developments on policies that impact your foundation and nonprofit partners, including: Charitable Deduction Donor-Advised Funds Federal Budget Global Philanthropy IRA Charitable Rollover…

National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations®

Learn more about the Value of National Standards The Intersection of Public Policy and National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations Community foundation leaders take seriously their role and commitment to serve and support their communities. To demonstrate this to lawmakers and the people…

2015 Annual Meeting Programming

.btn--blue:link,.btn--blue:visited{color:#fff;background-color:#002d4d;font-weight:bold;font-size:1em;padding:1em .75em;text-decoration:none;display:inline-block;margin-bottom:.5em;}.btn--blue:hover,.btn--blue:focus{color:#fff!important;background-color:#5081a7;border-color:#5081a7}.btn--blue:…

2015 Annual Meeting

.btn--blue:link,.btn--blue:visited{color:#fff;background-color:#002d4d;font-weight:bold;font-size:1em;padding:1em .75em;text-decoration:none;display:inline-block;margin-bottom:.5em;}.btn--blue:hover,.btn--blue:focus{color:#fff!important;background-color:#5081a7;border-color:#5081a7}.btn--blue:…

2015 Annual Meeting Registration

Registration Online registration is now closed. If you would still like to register for the conference, please fill out the paper registration form and bring it to the registration table in the Yerba Buena Foyer on the Lower B2 Level of the San Francisco Marriott Marquis. Registration Rates…

Politics, Policy, and Philanthropy: How Your Funding Priorities Could be Impacted This Year

Please join Council on Foundations members and others within the Southern California philanthropic community for a unique program to learn about the opportunities and challenges affecting the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors at a local, state, and federal levels as the 2016 election cycle gets…

Quarterly Member Update: 1st Quarter 2015

Join us to hear more about how you can maximize the Council's network to further enhance your work in the field. Senior leaders from the Council will be present to discuss additional services, initiatives, and updates that have an impact on the larger philanthropic community. Register Now…

Giving As Good As We Get

As my boss and Blackbaud CEO Mike Gianoni noted, “#GivingTuesday has gone from a simple idea to become a genuine global phenomenon.” The unofficial start to the end-of-year giving season once again kicked off this #GivingTuesday, December 2nd 2014, and with #UNselfies shared and charitable gifts…

FREE WEBINAR: Philanthropic Engagement Opportunities in HUD’s National Disaster Resilience Competition (NDRC)

Free Webinar Open to All Philanthropic Organizations Wednesday, January 7, 2015 at 1pm ET The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) launched the National Disaster Resilience Competition (NDRC) in September 2014. Through the NDRC, HUD is partnering with the Rockefeller Foundation…
Subscribe to Community Foundations