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. 

Washington Update: The Rules of Policy Engagement

  Download the Presentation Slides As foundation leaders, we know that philanthropy is a pillar of American society. While we may assume this is widely understood, that is often not the case. In light of the upcoming 2016 election and the impending changes in government leadership, it is…

2016 Endowment Investing Outlook

Members View the Recording and Slides     Investors are facing one of the worst starts to a calendar year on record. Volatility in China, rising interest rates in the US, and falling oil prices have all contributed to the markets’ unease. The ongoing correction has seen stock prices…

Washington Snapshot - January 8, 2016

Executive & Regulatory News Treasury, IRS Withdraw Proposed Rule for Gift Substantiation Yesterday, the Treasury Department and the IRS announced it has withdrawn the proposed rule that would have created an alternative way for charitable organizations to acknowledge and substantiate gifts…

Philanthropy Week in Washington 2016

April 11 - 15, 2016 Philanthropy Week in Washington provides the opportunity to highlight the role and power of philanthropy in our country and across the globe. During Philanthropy Week in Washington, we shine a spotlight on American philanthropy’s critical role as a unique stakeholder in…

Super Bowl Tailgate (Overtime): Legal Lunch Series with Legal Affairs

Members View the Recording and Slides     We know it can be difficult navigating the X’s and O’s of exempt organization compliance. Our play callers, Suzanne Friday and Bryan Del Rosario, are here to help. In this Legal Lunch Series, Suzanne and Bryan will draw up plays and pass along…

Governance Basics- Board Structure, Committees and Delegation and Policies and Procedures

  Download the Presentation Slides In partnership with Guidestar, this webinar reviews some of the fundamental issues associated with board governance. Topics include: board structure (size and composition); the role of committees and the board’s ability to delegate; and the…

The IRA Rollover is Permanent - What that Means for Your Community Foundation

Members View the Recording     Since the passage of the PATH Act on December 18, 2015, the Council has received a number of good questions about year-end giving. In response, we updated our IRA Rollover toolkit to help you communicate the importance of this change to your donors and…

A Historic Victory for Philanthropy

Today we celebrate a major victory for community foundations and your donors. The charitable “tax extenders” are no longer “extenders” that must be reinstated each year, but have become a permanent part of our tax code. In a historic vote, Congress passed the IRA Charitable Rollover into…

President Signs IRA Rollover into Law

Today we celebrate a major victory for community foundations and your donors. The charitable “tax extenders” are no longer “extenders” that must be reinstated each year, but have become a permanent part of our tax code. In a historic vote, Congress passed the IRA Charitable Rollover into…

Washington Snapshot - December 18, 2015

Washington Snapshot will be taking a break for the next few weeks during the holidays. Our offices will be closed from December 25th—January 1st, but we wish all of our readers a happy and peaceful holiday with family and friends! Snapshot will return on Friday, January 8th. News from the Hill One…

Senate Makes IRA Rollover Permanent

Just before noon on December 18, the Senate voted to pass the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act making the IRA Charitable Rollover permanent law. The bill, which passed the House on December 17, also makes permanent the enhanced deductions for conservation easement and food inventory…

2015 Year in Review

Friends and Colleagues, Last December, I spoke of 2014 as a Year of Action, and it was! We began putting into place the programs, services, and staff we knew would provide value to our members. In 2015, we’ve begun to see these foundational investments pay off, and I hope you’ve begun to see how…

The House Passes Permanent Charitable Extenders

Moments ago the House of Representatives passed the PATH Act making the IRA Charitable Rollover and two other charitable giving incentives permanent law. Members of the House showed strong bipartisan support for these important measures with a vote of 318 - 109. “This is a major victory for…

Council Submits Comments on IRS Gift Substantiation Proposal

A proposed rule by the IRS would allow charities to file an additional information return by February 28th each year that includes taxpayer identification information for donors who contribute $250 or more, and provide a copy of the return to these donors in lieu of a contemporaneous written…

Washington Snapshot - December 11, 2015

News from the Hill Extender Negotiations Coming Down to the Wire Make Your Voice Heard! Despite efforts to pass a “tax extenders” package with a federal spending bill by today’s deadline, negotiations between Congressional Democrats and Republicans reached a stalemate—forcing the passage of…

Addressing inequality amid plenty – the SDGs and the United States

This article appears in the December 2015 edition of Alliance Magazine. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide an opportunity to not only address challenges in developing countries, but also to make progress on many of the same challenges that persist in ‘developed’ countries. Each of the…
Subscribe to Community Foundations