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 school teacher’s dream becomes reality with help from the Derby Community Foundation
This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of community foundations with this series.
See where it all began at our
Fall…
9 Lessons on Preparing for Disaster Grantmaking
This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of community foundations with this series.
See where it all began at our
Fall…
Multi-Year Collaborative Effort Addresses Food Insecurity
This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of community foundations with this series.
See where it all began at our
Fall…
Protect giving: A chance for real bipartisanship
Foundations and charities face a pivotal moment.
In July, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the America Gives More Act (H.R. 4719) with a bipartisan vote of 277 to 130. Now it needs to pass the Senate. I signed 100 letters to the members of the U.S. Senate urging them to act…
Saying Yes to a Brighter Future
“When Say Yes launched, I said ‘Yes, here we go! Yes to everything. Yes, you can go to college. Yes, you can accomplish your dreams. Yes, you can be a role model.’”
JAMES GRICE, FATHER OF A SAY YES BUFFALO STUDENT
This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on…
2014 Fall Conference for Community Foundations Programming
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Aligning Social Action: In Southern Indiana, Education Matters
This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of community foundations with this series.
See where it all began at our
Fall…
The Council on Foundations Announces 2014 Recipients of Distinguished Service Award and Robert W. Scrivner Award for Creative Grantmaking
The Council on Foundations announced today that Darcy Oman, President and CEO of The Community Foundation Serving Richmond and Central Virginia, received the Distinguished Service Award. And, Shelley Trott, Director of Arts Strategy and Ventures for the Kenneth Rainin Foundation received the Robert…
2015 Annual Meeting - Leading Together: Hope and Opportunity in a Destabilized World
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Combine Funders and Shake
In summer 2012 I was a brand new Program Officer and wasn’t sure what to expect when I joined a group from the Jewish Funders Network (JFN) on a rural bus tour of eight youth camps in three days. My traveling companions were members and guests of the JFN Disability Peer Network. We were all trying…
Learning in Lansing
High school completion program helps refugees of all ages earn their diplomas
This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of…
Investing for Impact – Improving the Lives of Frederick County Citizens
This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of community foundations with this series.
See where it all began at our
Fall…
Long Term Recovery
This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of community foundations with this series.
See where it all began at our
Fall…
Preparing for ‘When’ by Creating More Resilient Communities
This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of community foundations with this series.
See where it all began at our
Fall…
Can The American Dream of Home Ownership Be Restored?
This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of community foundations with this series.
See where it all began at our
Fall…
6 Reasons to Play with Matches
The idea of coordinated giving days is gaining momentum. These social media campaigns provide an image-building opportunity for community foundations as well as opportunities to build the capacity of our grantees to raise money for themselves. Rather than providing technical assistance, project…