Transforming Communities

News and opinion about community foundations and philanthropy

CF in Action Peter Panepento CF in Action Peter Panepento

How a N.C. Community Foundation Is Marshaling Support to Create Affordable Housing

The Foundation for the Carolinas is taking the lead in addressing Charlotte’s shortage of affordable housing.

The foundation recently announced it has secured more than $30 million in matching funds for the Charlotte Housing Opportunity Investment Fund it started to help support a government-led effort to address the region’s housing shortage. 

The funds support a combination of new affordable housing construction, support for existing affordable housing infrastructure, and lowered interest rates, according to the foundation.

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Peter Panepento Peter Panepento

Study: Donor-Advised Funds Give Lifeline to Nonprofits During Recessions

When the next recession hits, donor-advised funds are expected to help cushion the blow for nonprofits, even as other revenue sources decline, a new study finds.

The study — conducted by Dan Heist, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and Danielle Vance-McMullen, an assistant professor at the University of Memphis — used Internal Revenue Service data from 2007 to 2016 to analyze the grant making activity of donors who have funds at 996 donor-advised-fund sponsors.

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Peter Panepento Peter Panepento

Community Foundations Lead Push for Census Outreach in New York State

New Yorkers have a lot to lose if its population is undercounted in the 2020 Census.

But a group of foundations led by the New York Community Trust is calling on the state to join them in funding an outreach effort targeted at helping ensure traditionally undercounted communities are fully counted.

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CF in Action Peter Panepento CF in Action Peter Panepento

Community Foundations Help Workers Displaced by Federal Shutdown

As the partial shutdown of the federal government enters its second month, a growing number of U.S. community foundations are stepping up to provide funding and other support to impacted workers and nonprofits.

In Washington, D.C., the shutdown is affecting an estimated 285,000 federal government and contract workers. In turn, it is wreaking havoc on the region’s economy and putting a huge strain on nonprofits that provide help with food and shelter, utilities, and social services.

As the need has grown, the Greater Washington Community Foundation has started setting aside and raising money to help nonprofits address the most critical needs.

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Peter Panepento Peter Panepento

First We Bind the Wounds, Then We ...

A Pittsburgh Foundation leader reflects on the changing role of community foundations in an era of mass killings, bigotry, and hatred.

Raising money to bind the wounds is only the first step. What happens after that?

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