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. 

Council on Foundations Peer Networking Event

Join Council staff members, Kim Bluitt, Member Relations Director, Pacific, and your peers in the Southern California area for peer networking and conversation on the benefits of Council membership. The Council provides an array of services to assist foundation members. We are constantly seeking…

Dispatch from this Year's Hispanics in Philanthropy Conference and the HIP Giver Gala

A few weeks ago, we were happy to join several hundred of our colleagues in San Francisco for Hispanics in Philanthropy’s (HIP) 2015 Conference and HIPGiver Gala. The daylong series of events focused on Latino leadership in the philanthropic sector, as well as exploring the needs and opportunities…

Power in Philanthropy - Lessons of Failure & Success

Tiziana Dearing is the former CEO of Boston Rising, a place-based, anti-poverty, public foundation that aimed to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty by replicating the Robin Hood Foundationand Harlem Children Zone’s models in Grove Hall, a Boston neighborhood inundated with poverty and…

Webinar Recording: Cross-Border Philanthropy Regulations and Current Challenges

Recording
Download a copy of the slides from this webinar.

The American Dream at Risk: Using the Opportunity Index to Improve Communities

Where you live shouldn’t determine how far you can go in life. The Opportunity Index is the nation’s first tool to holistically measure opportunity in communities. Connecting multiple economic, educational, and civic factors, the Index is a powerful way for states and counties to track and advance…

New Report Provides Comprehensive Operations and Demographic Data on Foundations

The Council on Foundations today announced the release of the 2014 Grantmakers Salary and Benefits Report, the most comprehensive information available on staff composition and compensation for U.S. foundations and corporate giving programs. Salary information is provided for 35 executive,…

Access to Care for Military Veterans and their Families

Download the slides for this webinar. Sponsored by the Military Family Research Institute at Purdue University, this webinar explored the scientific realities behind an important policy issue - veterans and access to health care. Specific topics included the barriers to care, access to care, the…

Cross-Border Philanthropy Regulations and Current Challenges

The topic of regulatory frameworks that govern global grantmaking consistently arises as a priority for Council members. This webinar will discuss a range of issues, touching on both global and domestic policies that impact your work. For example, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a…

2015 Annual Meeting Sessions

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Humility

Humble. If there were one word that ought to drive philanthropists, that’s it. I am not saying it is always a word that does drive us. I am saying it ought to be.  It can be exciting and fulfilling to work in the world of philanthropy, to collaborate and work with generous people,…

2015 Annual Meeting Preconference Programming

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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…
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