Public Foundations
Public foundations are grantmaking public charities that gain their funds from a variety of sources, which may include foundations, individuals, corporations, or public entities. Public foundations may engage in fundraising, and may seek broad public financial support. They may or may not have endowments. There is no legal definition of a public foundation, but most dedicate a significant portion of their annual budgets to grantmaking. Most community foundations are also grantmaking public charities.
Since public foundations may be defined in different ways, and there is no official IRS or legal definition of public foundations, it is difficult to arrive at statistics that are fully representative of the field.
Below is everything on our site for public foundations. We strongly 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/programs-services/public-grantmaking-charities for curated public foundation content.
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…
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 - 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…
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.…
PhilEx Live: Accepting Cryptocurrency Gifts
Developed out of a trending conversation on the Philanthropy Exchange (PhilEx), the Council invites you to join a member-only peer-led discussion around accepting cryptocurrency gifts.
Join peers from member organizations across the country to discuss the steps they are taking…
A Census Like No Other: A Multi-Sector, Community-Focused Partnership
Despite having millions of households considered “hard-to-count,” and being challenged by a global pandemic, California successfully implemented Census outreach in 2020, generating a 69.6% response rate, higher than the national average response rate. In this session, foundation,…
Numbers Don’t Lie: A Data-Guided Approach to Addressing Racial Inequities in Philanthropic Practice
Philanthropic giving to communities of color remains low. In 2016, The Pittsburgh Foundation began a journey toward more just grantmaking, leading with data to achieve greater equity. This session will provide an overview of an approach that led to sustained increases in monetary and non-monetary…
Participation, Power and Philanthropy: Putting Nonprofits and Communities in the Driver's Seat
As grantmakers, our desire to have a transformational impact on the communities we serve catalyzes and ignites our work. To create the greatest impact, we must work in tandem with nonprofits and those with lived experience to sufficiently understand the issues and to co-create a path forward. What…
Digital Dependencies, Discrimination, and Democracy: What are Philanthropy’s Roles?
Every aspect of public life depends on digital systems. Awareness and adaptation to the potential harms of digital systems is critical to pursuing positive change. Black women are leading the way in scholarship and advocacy regarding the intersections of digital systems, racism and discrimination…
Building the Next-Generation Community Investment Ecosystem: How Foundations Can Advance Racial Equity
Will recovery from COVID-19 and racial reckoning finally bring our society closer to racial justice? This session will explore how foundations can shift the ways capital enters communities of color by helping to build investment ecosystems that finance community priorities. Participants will…
Bridging Federal and State Political Divides to Address Family Economic Inequality
Join the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, HHS’ Administration for Children and Families, and the American Public Human Services Association on their journey to advance whole family approaches to economic mobility, leveraging a unique public-private partnership with diverse perspectives including…
Community Foundation Legal Question of the Month
June 2021
We have a DAF advisor who is interested in making a grant to a new nonprofit organization that is still waiting on their 501(c)(3) determination. The grant they are recommending is for a specific project of the organization. Can we still make the grant if we do expenditure responsibility…
Leading Together 2021 - Sponsors
Sponsors
The Council thanks all of our sponsors for their generous support of Leading Together.
If you're interested in how you can partner with us to create an exceptional experience, learn about our sponsor opportunities.
Sponsor…
Corporate Legal - Ask Me Anything FAQs
What is the Philanthropy Exchange?
The Philanthropy Exchange is a peer-to-peer platform that connects Council members around shared interests, topics, or resources. The Exchange is a member-only benefit open to Council members and invited guests. To help you get started on the Exchange, here is a…