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Ask NCFP: Grant Management Systems

Posted on December 28, 2020 by Katie Scott

Courtesy of Photo by Alejandro Escamilla on Unsplash Despite the upheaval COVID-19 has caused, many foundations are finding time to revisit their strategies, systems, and tools. Several funders have reached out to NCFP in recent weeks looking for guidance on evaluating grants management systems. We are not experts on all systems available, but NCFP staff members have used grants systems… Read More
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Good Grants Gone Bad

Posted on November 6, 2020 by Shirley McLaughlin

Editor’s note: We encourage funders to adopt Trust-based philanthropy practices wherever possible, but still there are times when it’s necessary to reflect on your expectations and agreements with grantees. Most private family foundations are primarily grantmakers, furthering their charitable purposes by making grants to other 501(c)(3) nonprofits. This post discusses a few situations private foundation and other funders may encounter… Read More
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How do we work with our local community foundation to train young philanthropists?

Posted on December 15, 2017 by Youth Philanthropy Connect, National Center for Family Philanthropy

Our family foundation would like to work with the local community foundation to set up a program that will help train younger philanthropists – both those in our family as well as other youth in the community. Do you have suggestions for models that others have used? Indeed we do! NCFP worked with Youth Philanthropy Connect, a former initiative of… Read More
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How can family foundations and community foundations work most effectively together?

Posted on September 15, 2017 by Tim Ober, Shelley Hoss, National Center for Family Philanthropy, Keith Swayne, Audrey Jacobs, Ann Mulholland

Are there good examples of family foundations working closely with the donor community, brought to the table via the community foundation, to strengthen philanthropic initiatives broadly? How can we partner with the community foundations in our state to know community goals and make more effective grants in those areas? … Read More