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. 

Democracy, Healing Divides, and Civic Life

With heightened polarization and divisiveness, growing mistrust of public institutions, protests against racial injustice, and uncertainty over the electoral infrastructure, recent events have revealed the remarkable fragility of our institutions and the norms supporting them. At the very least,…

Please Forgive Our Mess. We’re Building Trust Here.

Building relationships and trust is messy. Where do you start? And how do you keep moving forward, when sometimes it seems impossible to find common ground? York County Community Foundation embarked on a journey starting in 2018 to intentionally build bridges and work together with people of color…

A Blueprint for Transformation and DEI: The Ashley Stewart Story

The remarkable transformation of Ashley Stewart, one of the country’s largest brands serving Black women, is a story about how trusting relationships make us all better. Under the leadership of then chairman and CEO, James Rhee, Ashley Stewart overcame impossible odds to bring the company out…

Solidarity Philanthropy in Action: Walking the Talk

Amidst the interrelated crises of ecological collapse, systemic racism and social injustices, there is a call to action for solidarity philanthropy. This sounds good but what does it mean in practice? To show true solidarity as a foundation requires trust-based funding, alignment between grant…

Collective Action Strategies for Advancing Health Equity: Addressing Root Causes of Pain and Despair

Black, Brown, Indigenous and Immigrant populations have suffered disproportionate rates of hospitalization and death from COVID-19. The death of George Floyd reiterated the need to address racial justice and equity in our sector. This confluence of racial injustice and health inequities are…

A Better Path Forward: Unlikely Partnerships for the Greater Good

Sponsored by Conrad N. Hilton Foundation This uplifting conference kickoff envisions a sector that mobilizes unlikely partnerships—especially in times of crisis—to create shared vision and real change. Philanthropic leaders are uniquely positioned to help various stakeholders find what…

Community Philanthropy Update - May 2021

Foundations and donors of all kinds have responded in creative and impressive ways to COVID-19, as well as the other crises of the previous year. Community foundations have served as beacons of hope and safety, educators and public health outlets, and conduits for vital aid during the pandemic…

Leading Together 2021 - Leadership in Action

  Leadership in Action Solidarity Philanthropy in Action: Walking the Talk   Wednesday, June 16 | 3:20-4:00 p.m. Amidst the interrelated crises of ecological collapse, systemic racism and social…

Leading Together 2021 - Fireside Chats

  Fireside Chats Disrupting the Narrative: The Power of the Story   Tuesday, June 15 | 2:50-3:30 p.m. How do you change the narrative of a continent that has been entrenched in people’s minds for…

The Council on Foundations Announces 2021 Career Pathways Cohorts

WASHINGTON, DC - The Council on Foundations today announced the two cohorts selected to participate in the 2021 Career Pathways program, a leadership development program designed to diversify the talent pipeline for executive roles in the philanthropic sector. The 47 new participants are members of…

Leading Together 2021 - Plenary Sessions

  Plenary sessions A Better Path Forward: Unlikely Partnerships for the Greater Good   Tuesday, June 15 | 11:15 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Sponsored by Conrad N. Hilton Foundation This uplifting conference…

Webinar Recording: Policy Update: Connecting the Dots Between the Biden Administration's Policy Proposals and Philanthropy

  Hear an overview of the recently passed $1.9 trillion relief legislation known as the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and the key pillars of the new infrastructure proposals, the American Jobs Plan, announced by President Biden on March 31. The jobs plan targets 40 percent of the…

Systemic Racism: Disasters Expose It – How Do We Address It?

Racism is ever-present in our society, but for those who are not Black, Indigenous or People of Color (BIPOC), it is sometimes easy to brush it aside. However, disasters lay bare the inequities that exist in societies around the world. COVID-19 has been a clear example of how disasters exacerbate…

Leading Together 2021 - Unable to Attend

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Leading Together 2021 - Concurrent Sessions

  Concurrent sessions Leading Together 2021 centered trust and equity as critical cornerstones of strong partnerships and effective, high integrity philanthropy. The conference featured programming you won't find anywhere else. Our concurrent sessions focused on one of three themes.…

Leading Together 2021 - Raising the Bar Sessions

  Raising the bar These sessions focused on sharing the best practices, resources, and tools for philanthropic leaders to be agents of change in their organizations and communities. Participation, Power and Philanthropy: Putting Nonprofits and Communities…
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