A Look at the Transparent and Accessible Community Foundation of Sonoma County

Based in Santa Rosa, California, the Community Foundation of Sonoma County (CFSC) has assets of over $227 million held in over 450 charitable funds. It has awarded over $275 million in grants since forming in 1983 and operates with a dedicated and knowledgeable staff of about a dozen professionals, plus a board of directors that represents a cross-section of the county’s business, philanthropic and civic leaders.

This is one of the major community foundations in the San Francisco Bay Area. Let’s dive into CFSC’s grantmaking to learn more about how to approach this funder for support.

A time of transition

In March of 2023, CFSC announced its new president and CEO, Óscar Chávez. He had already been a community leader for over 25 years before joining CFSC and served on the foundation’s board of directors for nine years. Previously, Chávez was the assistant director at the Sonoma County Department of Human Services and executive director at Community Action Partnership Sonoma County.

During the hiring process, CFSC maintained a high level of transparency and shared details about its work with the Carlson Beck executive search firm and about its creation of a seven-member search committee. This is just one of many examples showing how CFSC maintains transparency in its philanthropic work and makes itself accessible to grantseekers and the general public.

Seven grant programs

CFSC has worked through multiple grant programs in the past, including ones focused on the COVID-19 pandemic, educational equity and children’s literacy. Today, there are seven active grant programs at the foundation. These include the Arts and Education Grant Program, Sonoma County Vintners Community Grants, Educational Education Pathways Project, Julia L. Grant Fund for Basic Human Needs, Latino Leadership Fund Grant Program, Sonoma County Resilience Fund and post-secondary scholarships. Each of these programs has its own unique guidelines and deadlines.

Specific topics of interest

As a county-wide community funder, CFSC takes a broad approach to grantmaking and supports nearly any type of nonprofit need, just as long as it serves the local population. In the most recent year with financial information available, the foundation contributed the most money to its Resilience Fund, which is the only long-term recovery fund in the county dedicated to helping residents impacted by disasters. Resilience Fund grants have supported relief efforts related to wildfires, COVID-19, housing, trauma, disaster preparedness and planning ahead for disaster situations.

After the Resilience Fund, education groups have been receiving the most CFSC support, including grants to the Sonoma County Office of Education and Circuit Rider Community Services. Other funding areas are animal welfare, arts and culture, the environment, foster youth, homeless services, basic needs, Latino leadership, mental health and sponsorships.

Applying for funding

Grantseekers may find the CFSC grant process refreshingly straightforward and accessible. The foundation offers a downloadable grant application portal guide and an additional guide featuring resources for creating a successful grant proposal. The funder’s competitive grants are open to incorporated nonprofit organizations that serve Sonoma County, but it has some programs available by invitation only. The foundation takes a trust-based approach to grantmaking and encourages groups that believe their programs strongly align with certain grant criteria to reach out to staff via email.

Read IP’s full profile of this funder to learn more about its giving, or browse our Bay Area & Northern California grant guide to get a better sense of key funders and funding trends in this region.

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