READY Community Foundations

READY Community Foundations is one of four tracks offered by ARC’s READY Appalachia initiative.

In many areas of Appalachia, community foundations are the only philanthropic option for nonprofits, local government entities and other community groups.

READY Community Foundations provides no-cost training to help these organizations strengthen operations, programming and fundraising.

Following completion of the training program, participants will be eligible to apply for up to $25,000 in funding (no-match required) to implement internal capacity-building projects and bolster their organizations as critical local funding sources.

Latest News

ARC Announces 30 Participating Community Foundations

In August 2024, ARC announced the 30 community foundations from 10 Appalachian states selected for this training program.

Participants attend six weeks of virtual, cohort-based learning to build to critical skills to better serve their communities.

Training and Funding

Build a Strong Foundation

READY Community Foundations participants build connections through this cohort-based learning structure, and develop skills in areas including:

  • Foundation-specific financial management.
  • Endowment investing and accounting. 
  • Affiliate models. 
  • Community-centric fundraising and grantmaking.
  • Community-rooted collective impact agendas.
  • Mission and strategy development. 
  • Communications strategy.

Helping All Communities Access Resources

Community foundations serving economically distressed counties in the Appalachian Region are strongly encouraged to participate.

Contact Us

If you have questions, please contact ready@purposepossible.com.