Arlington Community Foundation

The general Community grantmaking of Arlington Community Foundation includes proactive awards to meet the needs highlighted by our special initiatives as well as the implementation of the charitable intentions of the many individuals, families and businesses that have chosen to be actively involved in the grantmaking process through field of interest and donor-advised funds. Individuals and families use the platform of the Arlington Community Foundation to explore and implement their own charitable visions and missions, receiving staff assistance as desired. The primary focus for our discretionary funding has been on mitigating the displacement of our low-income neighbors under the broad category of shared prosperity. This includes our prompt response fund that disbursed funds to help those in need related to the pandemic health and economic fallout, our guaranteed income pilot, as well as our long-standing affordable housing, economic mobility, and affordable child care efforts. We are collaborating with a number of different organizations through these initiatives, including organizations in the business Community, Arlington county, and a number of local and national nonprofits.

The Arlington Community Foundation has a well-established scholarship program that matches approximately 200 students with awards each year. Generous individuals, families, companies and organizations fund the scholarships, many of which have their own unique eligibility criteria. Individuals, families and businesses may choose to establish a named scholarship that honors a loved one, an employee or a Community member. The donor establishes the criteria for the scholarship and the Foundation's scholarship committee manages the selection process from a broad and diverse candidate pool. Criteria can be based on athletic skills, academic grades or Community service. Others contribute to a general pool of scholarship dollars through our Community scholarship fund which is broadly responsive to students in need based on their applications.