Greetings Friend,

Leading Locally, your reimagined community foundation conference, is just under two months away and the full schedule of events is now available! In a time of tumultuous change impacting our communities, solidarity and connection is more critical than ever.

Our 70+ concurrent sessions will connect you with peers and inspire and equip you to meet this moment. We've curated suggested sessions based on your role: whether you work in programs, human resources, policy, communications, donor services, or as the leader of your organization, there’s something at Leading Locally for you.

Here is just a taste of what you can learn about in Minneapolis-St. Paul:

• Deepen engagement and ignite generosity in your communities, with leaders from the Innovia Foundation, Greater Washington Community Foundation, and the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque.
• Take a people-first approach to fund distribution during disaster recovery, with leaders from Community Foundation Boulder County.
• Leverage the power of community-driven stories that break stereotypes, with leaders from the Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation.

We recognize this is a difficult moment for you and your nonprofit partners, many of whom have lost federal funding. To help us all navigate these challenges, we’re also hosting:

• A pre-conference Legal Matters for Community Foundations training, including a section focused on current issues, that can equip you to manage common legal challenges.
• A session with leaders from The Community Foundation for Northeast Florida on navigating the 119th Congress and making sure Congress understands your foundation’s work.
• A roundtable for leaders on how to join in solidarity to defend the philanthropic sector.

As R.T. Rybak, CEO of the Minneapolis Foundation shares, this is a time when we need each other. When we can move from surviving this moment to building a better future for our communities, together. I hope to see you at Leading Locally in June.

Best,

Natalie Ross Vice President, Membership, Development and Finance

Upcoming Events

Community Foundation Donor Services - April Meet-Up

April 23 | Virtual | Peer Event

Learning Across Differences Ideas Forum

April 23 | Virtual | Webinar

Member Policy Briefing: Midsize Community Foundations - April Meeting

April 24 | Virtual | Peer Event

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - April Peer Learning Circle

April 24 | Virtual | Peer Event

Exploring the Latest Community Foundation Snapshot: FY23 Annual CF Insights Survey Analysis

April 30 | Virtual | Webinar

Navigating the Moment: The Unique Role of Community Foundations

May 1 | Virtual | Peer Event

Community Foundation Excellence (CFE) Fundamentals Course - Virtual

May 6, 8, 13, 15 | Virtual | Training

Council & CEONet | Community Foundation CEO Roundtable - May 2025

May 7 | Virtual | Peer Event

Retreat for New Foundation Executive Leaders

May 8-9 | Indianapolis, IN | Executive Retreat

Leading Across Differences - May Peer Learning Circle

May 28 | Virtual | Peer Event

Leading Locally 2025

June 10-12, 2025 | Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN | Sector Event

New Member Spotlight

Welcome to the community foundations that have joined as new Council members since our last newsletter! We're excited to have Community Foundation of East Mississippi and The Fund for Santa Barbara as new members.

Resources You Can Use

Sign on: Public Statement to Protect Our Freedom to Give

Our charitable sector contributes to communities in every corner of America. As we face the threat of governmental attacks on our ability to carry out this vital mission when the communities, organizations, and individuals we support need it most, we must stand together to protect philanthropy.

We encourage you to sign on to our public statement from the sector and join the over 300 philanthropy organizations that are coming together to protect our freedom to give, including community foundations in every region of the country.

Legal Question of the Month with Staff Counsel Remy Barnwell

Question: If a nonprofit gets sued for whatever reason, can the plaintiff come after the nonprofit's agency endowment at a Community Foundation?

Answer: Thankfully, the answer is no. The assets in a nonprofit's agency endowment fund at a community foundation are the legal property of the community foundation rather than the donating nonprofit. But it is worth mentioning that a nonprofit should not contribute assets to their agency endowment at a community foundation merely to shield them from any legal proceedings or potential creditors.

Council members are able to send their questions to our legal team for expert advice and analysis. You can take advantage of this member benefit by becoming a member today.

CF Insights Highlight

Webinar: Unpacking the FY23 CF Insights Survey Results

Want to dig deeper into the latest CF Insights Survey Results? Are you wondering how your community foundation can leverage the data? 

Join us on April 30 at 3pm ET to hear from Dave Rosado, the Council’s Senior Advisor, Community Philanthropy as he shares insights from the FY23 CF Insights Annual Survey, representing key data on assets, grants, funds, and more from over 600 community foundations. Dave will also demonstrate how you can access individual community foundation peer data through the CF Insights benchmarking tool and give examples of how you can leverage CF Insights data to gain actionable insights and improve organizational practice. 

Take the 2025 Grantmaker Salary and Benefits Survey

The 2025 Grantmaker Salary and Benefits (GSB) Survey is open! We need your participation to ensure the GSB Report remains the most comprehensive guide to compensation and benefits information for philanthropic organizations in the U.S. Plus, participants receive early access to GSB data and a free copy of the report in the fall.

Join hundreds of fellow community foundations in supporting our sector by taking the survey.

Philanthropy Exchange Conversations for You

• Visual chart or graphic that would be representative of a community foundation
• Community Foundations that payoff school loans and vocational loan programs
• Seeking info on CFs that host funds that support regional nonprofit education, advocacy etc.

News Articles

• The Chronicle of Philanthropy: A Tariff ‘Tidal Wave': Higher Costs, Donor Pullback, More Budget Pain
• Inside Philanthropy: Rising Wave of Funders and PSOs Stand Up for the First Amendment Freedom to Give
• The Chronicle of Philanthropy: 10,000 Job Cuts in 70 Days. Introducing the Nonprofit Layoff Tracker
• Nonprofit Quarterly: Unite in Advance: Philanthropy Coalition Launches Solidarity Campaign

Keep in Touch!

Share your organization’s impact story with us at
cofcommunications@cof.org.

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