Evidence of Excellence

In response to a challenged global economy, expensive corporate bailouts, and several high-profile financial misdeeds and mistakes, Americans are more concerned than ever about where to put their money—this extends to their charitable investments. The dollars they set aside for charity are limited and precious. The institutions they choose to support must be credible and trustworthy. As a symbol of excellence and rigor, the National Standards Seal helps cautious philanthropists recognize and choose community foundations as a sound place to give and make a difference.

 

National Standards Guide Sound Policies and Accountable Practices

Community foundations of all sizes use National Standards as a roadmap to establish legal, ethical, effective practices that withstand the scrutiny of donors, government and media. National Standards can be used to publicly communicate community foundations’ commitment to accountability, excellence and service. Over time, the National Standards have become an important framework for the organizational development of community foundations. With National Standards, organizations can certify their status as a “community foundation,” and reaffirm their capability in delivering comprehensive services.

With National Standards as a base, community foundations establish high levels of ethical and operational integrity, separating themselves from the potential wrongdoing or mistakes of other entities. Community foundations also use National Standards to promote self-regulation in a manner viewed positively by the Internal Revenue Service, which has increased its scrutiny of charities, especially those offering donor advised funds.

 

National Standards Build Capacity to Carry Out Missions

National Standards set consistent expectations among community foundation boards and practitioners,
lending focus and saving time. They also provide a framework for documenting, communicating, and providing training and technical assistance to advance best practices.

 

National Standards Make Community Foundations Distinctive

Community foundations use National Standards to distinguish themselves from a variety of competitors that offer traditional community foundation services, such as donor advised funds, in a marketplace that is both local and national. As a field, community foundations engage in collective marketing, pooling resources and co-branding themselves to build awareness of the field for individual community foundation benefit. National Standards reduce the risk of joint marketing by ensuring all participants have met benchmarks for quality in operations and service.