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. 

2021 UN General Assembly Virtual Philanthropic Side-Events

This page is an archived schedule of philanthropic side-events from the 2021 United Nations General Assembly. See the most recent UNGA schedule instead. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many of the UNGA side-events will be remote or hybrid again. This page highlights events that may be of interest to…

2020 Council on Foundations - Commonfund Study of Investment of Endowments for Private and Community Foundations (CCSF) Report

Publication, Research
The CCSF report is the field’s most comprehensive and authoritative study on investment and governance policies and practices. The 2020 CCSF studies 260 private and community foundations that represent $115.4 billion in assets. Topics covered include: Returns and Investment Objectives…

Philanthropy's Response to Afghanistan Refugee Crisis

OVERVIEW With the departure of U.S. armed forces and the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban, a refugee crisis is unfolding throughout the region. According to the UNHCR, since the start of this year 550,000 Afghans have been forced to flee their homes because of conflict and the numbers…

COVID-19’s Long Tail: Developing a Mental Health Strategy for Recovery

COVID-19 is leaving a long tail of psycho-social impacts from the variety of losses that people have experienced during the pandemic such as death, illness, housing and job insecurity, and absence of in-person treatment. Policymakers and funders need a sustained and intentional strategy to address…

Highlights of the 2020 Council on Foundations–Commonfund Study of Foundations

Join Commonfund Institute and the Council on Foundations for a discussion of the results from the newly released 2020 Council on Foundations–Commonfund Study of Investment of Endowments for Private and Community Foundations® (CCSF). This webinar will mark the culmination of the ninth year…

2021 Public Policy Summit

Disaster in a Crisis Zone: Understanding the Impact of Haiti's Earthquake

  Download Slides   An M7.2 earthquake struck southwest Haiti on Aug. 14, leaving hundreds dead and causing widespread devastation, and Tropical Storm Grace is expected to pass over Haiti on Monday, Aug. 16, bringing heavy rains and strong winds. The Center for Disaster…

Philanthropy's Response to 2021 Haiti Earthquake

Overview A 7.2 magnitude earthquake devastated Haiti on August 14, 2021, killing more than 2,000 and crippling buildings and infrastructure. Haiti is also sustaining an almost direct hit from Tropical Storm Grace as of Monday, August 16. Compounding the turmoil caused by the natural disasters is…

Bridging Our Divides Begins with Building Trust and Finding Common Ground with Each Other

We are in a moment of dramatic change and re-imagining, what my friend and futurist Ari Wallach calls “The Intertidal”: a significant shift in global human culture and narrative, where what has been gives way to what will be. As we witness this profound shift, we also bear the responsibility,…

2021 Annual National Conference for Growing Community Foundations

Please join your community foundation colleagues in person or online for the 2021 HYBRID Annual National Conference for Growing Community Foundations. Travel for some good old-fashioned networking and professional development to embrace peers you have missed or explore what modern technology has to…

It is Not Enough to be Trustworthy, Philanthropy Needs to be a Trusted Partner

A few years ago, in my role guiding strategy and programs at the Democracy Fund, I took some time to explore the idea of “trust.” It was a construct that came up over and over again in conversations about democracy – for instance, do we trust elections to be safe and secure? What news sources can…

Council on Foundations Launches Executive-in-Residence Program, Names Sharon Alpert as First Resident

The Council on Foundations today announced the launch of an executive-in-residence program to support its new strategic direction. The program will leverage the expertise of executive-level leaders to shape new areas of work that advance the Council’s long-term goals of supporting philanthropy to…

Washington Snapshot: Eviction Moratorium Expires This Weekend

What You Need to Know About Public Policy This Week... News From the Council Eviction Moratorium Expires This Weekend House Passes Appropriations Bill States Encouraged to Educate Eligible Immigrants about Medicaid Coverage Department of Commerce Announces Investing in America's Communities…

Council Response to ACE Act

Why is the Council on Foundations pushing back on the ACE Act?  The Accelerating Charitable Efforts (ACE) Act would decelerate the expansion of charitable giving by adding complexity for foundations and donors and making it harder for philanthropy to address emerging and long-term challenges…

Accelerating Charitable Efforts Act (ACE Act)

On June 9, 2021, Senators King (I-ME) and Grassley (R-IA) introduced the Accelerating Charitable Efforts (ACE) Act. The bill modifies existing rules relating to donor advised funds (“DAFs”), creates an excise tax on sponsoring organizations, and makes certain changes to the rules governing private…

2021 HR Retreat - Sponsors and Sponsorship Opportunities

Our Sponsors The 2021 HR Retreat would not be possible without the generous support of our sponsors!       Sponsorship Opportunities The HR Retreat fulfills a critical sector need. The Council and CHANGE Philanthropy have a successful model for providing HR leaders from…
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