Community and donor trust are the key components to the Community Foundation’s growth and reputation within the community. This trust enables the Community Foundation to make a greater difference, year after year, while affecting more individuals and organizations in a positive manner. In an ongoing effort to further build the trust of donors and its reputation in the community, the Community Foundation recently underwent a compliance process of National Standards for all United States Community Foundations. 

 

The National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations were established in 2000 in cooperation with the Council on Foundations. The Council on Foundations (COF) is a membership organization and acts as an overseeing body to all community foundations that subscribe to its policies. The National Standards program was developed by the COF to guide community foundations in establishing legal, ethical, and effective operational practices that serve as blueprints for internal development and benchmarks for external assessment. The 43 National Standards require the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation, and others, to document its policies in donor services, investment management, grantmaking, and administration. With over 200 community foundations confirmed in compliance nationwide, the program is designed to provide quality assurance to donors, as well as their legal and financial representatives.

 

To receive confirmation of National Standards compliance, the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation submitted organizational and financial policies and procedures to a rigorous peer review. CRCF spent over a year gathering all the paperwork and data necessary to submit for compliance. After a nearly 8-month review by COF representatives of the submitted materials, CRCF was confirmed as being compliant in August 2006. This compliance to the National Standards represents the highest measure of accountability and transparency in philanthropy. This is due to the fact that community foundations are the only philanthropic organizations that have gone through such a process. In addition, compliance with National Standards is not a requirement and is done so only on a voluntary basis.

 

However, the CRCF Board of Directors felt that this was a process that needed to be undertaken, to further establish community trust and organizational credibility. National Standards compliance is all about building trust with stakeholders, donors, and the community as a whole. Therefore, this is not something CRCF was required to do but was something the Board of Directors wanted to do, to make sure that everything that is being done by the Foundation is being done the right way. The bottom line is that the Board of Directors want donors and the community to have the utmost confidence in what the CRCF does.  

 

The Community Foundation Board and staff are proud to have met these rigorous standards. As supporters of the Community Foundation, donors seek a higher standard for living, and CRCF believes that all deserve a higher standard of giving. It is the Community Foundation’s hope that compliance with National Standards reinforces this higher standard. If you would like more information on the CRCF’s compliance with National Standards, please call 661-3390.