Frequently Asked Questions

A community foundation is a nonprofit, public foundation, and grantmaker that serves a specific geographic area. Community foundations manage many funds, each created by a donor or donors for a specific purpose, all for the benefit of the foundation's service area.

The Community Foundation of Northern Illinois (CFNIL) was founded in 1953. Located in Rockford and serving Boone, Ogle, Stephenson, and Winnebago counties, CFNIL stewards over 500 funds valued over $150 million. Each year, through both designated and competitive processes, CFNIL distributes over $5 million in grants and scholarships for the benefit of northern Illinois.

An endowment is a lasting, often permanent, gift invested with the intent to provide support for the long term. Over 90% of CFNIL's funds are permanently endowed; their principal will never be spent, ensuring a perpetual resource for our region.

We offer four main fund types, three of which are permanently endowed: Agency, Donor Designated, and Scholarship. A fourth type, Donor Advised, is a highly flexible, non-permanent option. Learn more about the many ways to give.

CFNIL staff meet with a donor to learn about their charitable goals and determine the right solution. Every fund is governed by a formal fund agreement. There is no establishing fee and no minimum starting balance. A fund may be established by a gift of cash, stock, IRA transfer, an intent for a bequest, and more.

Yes! As a 501c3 nonprofit, gifts to CFNIL are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. Our EIN is 36-4402089.

CFNIL is proud to have earned a Platinum Seal of Transparency from Candid (formerly Guidestar). View our full Candid profile.

While every fund established with CFNIL is tracked and accounted for individually, the total fund assets are pooled to maximize investment performance.

CFNIL utilizes Marquette Associates, an independent investment consultant, to manage its investment portfolio. Marquette provides guidance and recommendations to CFNIL's Finance Committee to inform their decisions about the investment allocation mix, and facilitates communication and activity between CFNIL and the individual managers for each asset class. 

CFNIL's investment policy is structured to enhance investment performance while controlling risk through broad diversification of asset classes, investment strategies, and underlying managers. 

Statements providing an accounting of the investment performance and other activities of every fund are provided quarterly. CFNIL also provides quarterly Stewardship Summaries that provide details on our overall portfolio performance, both the aggregate performance going back 10 years and the current quarter performance for each investment allocation.

Sample Stewardship Summary
Sample Fund Statement

The chart included in each Stewardship Summary reflects the Foundation's most recent asset allocation by asset class. Total Fund performance is also compared to the Policy Index. The Policy Index is a weighted total performance of the underlying target benchmarks for the asset classes in the Total Fund. When the total return of the Fund exceeds the total return of the Policy Index, it indicates that the Foundation's investment managers are collectively outperforming the weighted performance of their respective benchmarks or deviations between the actual and policy allocation have been gradual.

The motivations of individual donors vary. Donors may create designated endowments for the benefit of particular nonprofits or for a charitable purpose. They may create a scholarship endowment for students attending a particular school, studying a particular subject, or demonstrating certain character, ability, or need. Donors may create a donor-advised endowment to take advantage of an immediate tax benefit or to retain the ability to advise grants from their endowment in the future.

Donors appreciate the concept of supporting a charity or a cause in perpetuity and leaving a legacy for future generations. Donors are often surprised to learn how easy it is to create an endowment at a community foundation and that there is a nonprofit institution dedicated to honoring their charitable intent.

No! The majority of CFNIL's existing funds accept additional donations. Many donors choose to give to an existing fund that supports a cause or organization that is important to them. Sometimes donors give in honor or memory of a loved one, often in recognition of a significant milestone such as a birthday or anniversary. 

Unrestricted gifts (gifts without a specific fund designation) are divided between CFNIL's operating endowment (supporting the staff, capital, and other costs associated with running the foundation) and unrestricted grantmaking (added to the allocation for competitive and discretionary local grants, including the Community Grants Program).

In addition to financial support, CFNIL utilizes the time and talent of hundreds of local volunteers who review scholarship and/or grant applications. Learn more about volunteering with CFNIL.