Community Foundation for the National Capital Region
Contact information:
1201 15th Street, NW, Suite 420
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: 202-955-5890
Fax: 202-955-8084
Website: http://www.cfncr.org/site/c.ihLSJ5PLKuG/b.4310557/k.1A22/CFNCR_Home.htm
Type of foundation: Community
Types of grants: General operating, capacity-building, project
Description: The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region manages nearly 700 donor-advised and field-of-interest funds, accounting for 90 percent of the Foundation's total giving. Most of these do not accept proposals. Some do, though; see the list of competitive grant opportunities online. Overall, the Foundation is interested in improving economic outcomes for youth and low-income families in the region through strengthening education and workforce development opportunities. To achieve this long-term goal, the Foundation leads strategic initiatives in the areas of:
- Education.
- Workforce.
- Nonprofit-sector capacity building.
The Fund makes discretionary grants via the Community Leadership Fund. These grants support nonprofit organizations whose programs and activities are directly related to the Fund's strategic initiatives. The Fund issues Requests-for-Proposals (RFP's) several times per year.
In some cases, donors create field-of-interest funds and then ask the Foundation for advice on which nonprofits to support. Most grant applications for field-of-interest funds are by invitation only. A list of the donor-advised funds is provided in the Annual Report.
Sample grants:
- $40,000 to DC Children's Advocacy Center for general support and capacity-building (2008).
- $35,000 to the Theatre Lab School of the Dramatic Arts for the Life Stories program for incarcerated and at-risk youth (2007).
- $30,000 to DC Employment Justice Center for general support and capacity-building (2008).
- $5,000 to Envision Greater Washington to support a regional visioning initiative (2007).
- In 2008, donor-recommended grants went to WAMU, WQED, WNYC Radio.
Fit for public broadcasting: The only media grants found came through donor-recommended funds. That said, the Community Leadership Fund may be a prospect for media initiatives focused on informing DC audiences about the priority focus areas of the Foundation (education, workforce/economy).
Eligibility: The Fund makes discretionary grants to organizations in the Greater Washington region. To provide specific services to sub-parts of its service area, the Foundation has established two "area affiliates" known as The Community Foundation for Montgomery County and Community Foundation for Prince George's County serving Montgomery and Prince Georges Counties, MD.
Deadline: Varies.
How to apply: The Foundation issues Requests for Proposals several times per year for grants from the Community Leadership Fund.
Giving range: Up to $150,000. The great majority of discretionary grants are below $50,000.
Assets: $261,540,131 (2008).
Total giving: $91 million (2008). This included $2,364,156 in Community Leadership Fund and Philanthropic Advisory Services grants. In addition, a total of $873,180 was given by the Fund's three regional affiliate foundations.
View 2008 Annual Report.
