Philanthropy 101 for State Government

What State Government Should Know about Charitable Foundations

No two foundations are the same.
- Foundations vary in their priorities, geographic scope of interest, and governance structures which has implications for their grantmaking interests and processes.
- State agencies interested in working with philanthropy should spend time researching prospective partners for alignment on the potential collaborative opportunity, and developing relationships with foundation staff.
The scope and scale of philanthropy is often misunderstood.
- State government funding for K12 education for 2023-24 was $12B. By contrast, in 2021, philanthropic giving from North Carolina based philanthropies across all issue areas was about $2B from an asset base of approximately $28B.
- Philanthropic funding in North Carolina can fill gaps, provide pilot and/or supplemental funding, and can often be used in more flexible ways than government funding.
Philanthropies do more than make grants.
- Foundations are experts on the communities they serve and often have subject matter expertise related to their funding interests.
- Foundations have community recognition and relationships with a wide range of communitybased organizations and leaders. For these reasons, foundations can provide thought partnership and strategic guidance to state government partners, as well as facilitate and support state agency interactions and engagement with local partners.

The North Carolina Network of Grantmakers (NCNG) is committed to helping private foundations, corporate giving programs, donor advised fund holders, and community foundations strengthen their impact and effectiveness. The network’s membership includes private foundations, community foundations, and corporate foundations and giving programs. The NCNG provided this slide presentation overview of foundations or you may watch a recording of this presentation.

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