Community Foundation Survey
FEG Community Foundation Survey
FEG’s Community Foundation Survey is focused on providing peer data across financial and enterprise topics relevant to the community foundation field. We seek to provide insights on the issues facing community foundations today, so they can make a greater impact for tomorrow.
Survey topics include:
- Asset Allocation
- Spending Policy and Rebalancing
- Values Aligned Investing
- Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) - Diverse Asset Managers
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Enterprise Trends (Donor Development and Investment Governance)
Community Foundations Have Participated
About the Survey
What started as a simple flash poll in 2015, transformed into a robust and comprehensive annual study that has provided key industry insights for a decade. Since 2016, the survey has garnered participation from more than 250 community foundations across 46 states nationwide, informing strategic decisions that can drive impactful change in local communities.
2024 Survey Highlights
Thank you to all of the community foundations who participated in the FEG 2024 Community Foundation Survey! In 2024, 107 U.S. community foundations across 31 states came together to drive change by participating in the survey, providing a number of key findings on select investment and enterprise topics. First, the survey indicated that the OCIO service model continues to gain traction among community foundations, although the traditional/non-discretionary model remains the most popular. Additionally, spending rates slightly increased this past year, reversing course since the survey’s inception. When asked about hiring diverse asset managers, over 40% of community foundations said they have hired or are considering hiring diverse asset managers, but the topic declined in overall interest this past year. And finally, allocation to Responsive Investing (RI) continues to be supported by 50% of respondents, although donor interest in the strategy declined for a second consecutive year.
The survey was open for responses online from January 16 - March 8, 2024. Participants did not pay to be included in the survey. Participants also had the option to complete as a word document and email the results back to FEG. The data from this survey was grouped into between five and seven categories based on assets of the community foundation, with assets ranging from less than $25 million to greater than $1 billion. The information in this study is based on the responses provided by the participants and is meant for illustration and educational purposes only.
Note: Assets under advisement were self reported by respondents as of September 30, 2023.
To download the slides from the 2024 presentation, complete the form below.
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Industry Leaders in Community Foundations
We bring together enterprise considerations from dozens of Community Foundations to provide key insight into planning for the future.