Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation

What Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation does

Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation (CPCF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community foundation founded in 1995 and headquartered at 1616 East Pleasant Valley Blvd., Altoona, Pennsylvania. It serves as the regional philanthropic platform for Blair County and surrounding Central Pennsylvania, administering donor-established charitable funds, awarding scholarships to local students, and distributing competitive grants to qualifying 501(c)(3) nonprofits in areas such as culture, arts, education, health and social services, economic vitality, and religious organizations. The foundation has administered over 1,500 post-secondary scholarships since inception and currently stewards hundreds of specialized funds, including the Blair County Community Fund, the Sustaining Visionary Fund, a General Operating Fund, and externally administered trusts such as the T. Dean Lower and Jane Young Lower Trust (since 2011), which alone has deployed $500,000+ in grants to six local nonprofits since 2012.

The foundation's product surface spans fund management services, scholarship administration, competitive grant programs, and estate/planned giving facilitation. Its technology footprint is intentionally light: the public-facing site runs on WordPress (centralpagives.org); credit-card donations are processed through PayPal at 1.99% + $0.49 per transaction; email communications are managed via Mailchimp; and authenticated fund owners access an FCSuite ERP-based donor portal. The organization holds COPPA compliance policies, is registered with the Pennsylvania Department of State, and accepts tax-deductible contributions to the fullest extent of the law.

CPCF operates with a small staff of 1-10 employees under Executive Director Jodi Cessna and is governed by an independent board. Its revenue model is donation-based, generating inflows through individual donors, family foundations, memorial and scholarship gifts, and bequests; it then deploys those resources via grant cycles, scholarships, and fund-management fees (implicitly, through administrative allocations on endowed funds). Customer segments are diversified across individual donors, Blair County nonprofits, students and educational institutions, and faith-based organizations; however, all are geographically constrained to Central Pennsylvania.

Name

Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation

Legal name

Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation

Website

https://centralpagives.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation (CPCF) is a 501(c)(3) community foundation founded in 1995 in Altoona, PA, administering donor-established charitable funds, awarding scholarships to local students, and distributing competitive grants to Blair County nonprofits across arts, education, health, and community causes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Foundation and Philanthropic Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC)

Keywords

• Community foundation services
• Charitable fund management
• Scholarship administration
• Nonprofit grantmaking
• Philanthropic advisory services

Headquarters

HQ city

Altoona

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donor Contributions and Fund Management: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community foundation, CPCF generates revenue through charitable donations and manages donor-established funds. They process online donations via PayPal and distribute grants and scholarships to qualifying recipients in Blair County and surrounding Central Pennsylvania areas.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

CPCF is a 501(c)(3) community foundation that manages donor-established charitable funds, administers scholarships for students in Blair County and Central Pennsylvania, and distributes competitive grants to local 501(c)(3) nonprofits. It also facilitates estate and planned giving for individuals and families seeking to create philanthropic legacies. Donations are processed online via PayPal and supported by an FCSuite-based Donor Portal for fund owners.

Product overview

The Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation offers a platform of philanthropic services centered around fund management, scholarships, and grants. The core offering consists of fund management services that enable donors to create and manage charitable funds with specific missions, supplemented by scholarship programs supporting Blair County students, competitive grant programs for local nonprofits, and estate planning services for legacy giving. Additional digital platforms include the Donor Portal for fund management and an Online Donation Platform with PayPal integration. The foundation manages hundreds of specialized funds including the Blair County Community Fund, Sustaining Visionary Fund, and General Operating Fund, all working together to connect donors with community needs across Central Pennsylvania.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fund Management Services Central service enabling donors to create, manage, and contribute to charitable funds with specific missions, including donor-advised funds, scholarship funds, and nonprofit endowment funds. For individuals, families, and organizations in Central Pennsylvania.
• Scholarship Programs Administered scholarship funds supporting students in Blair County and Central Pennsylvania, including memorial scholarships, field-specific scholarships, and general educational support. For high school seniors and college students pursuing post-secondary education.
• Grant Programs Competitive grants awarded to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations in Blair County supporting arts, culture, education, health, social services, and economic development. For local nonprofit organizations.
• Estate and Planned Giving Legacy giving programs including charitable bequests, trust arrangements, and estate planning assistance to help donors create lasting philanthropic legacies. For individual donors, families, and estate planners in Central Pennsylvania.
• Donor Portal (FCSuite ERP) Online platform for fund owners to manage their charitable funds, view statements, and access fund management tools through the FCSuite ERP portal. For existing CPCF fund owners and donors.
• Online Donation Platform Web-based donation system allowing donors to give to existing funds, make memorial/honor gifts, and manage recurring donations with PayPal processing. For individual donors and community members.
• Blair County Community Fund General grantmaking fund that supports competitive grants process for Blair County organizations promoting scientific research, arts, culture, scholarships, and community improvement. For local 501(c)(3) nonprofits.
• Sustaining Visionary Fund A category-based giving initiative allowing donors to support an area of impact (culture, health, education, etc.) with distributions made according to the donor's chosen focus area. For individual donors and community members.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1,500 post-secondary scholarships awarded since 1995
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered supporting and core.

• MailchimpsupportingTechnology or IntegrationMailchimp provides email subscription management for CPCF's newsletter and communications. CPCF uses Mailchimp to manage email subscriptions and send newsletters to subscribers.
• PayPalsupportingTechnology or IntegrationPayPal processes online giving transactions for CPCF. Credit card donations are processed via PayPal with a 1.99% + $0.49 fee per transaction.
• Various Local NonprofitscoreOthersCPCF partners with local Blair County nonprofits including Altoona Community Theatre, Altoona Symphony Orchestra, Blair County Arts Foundation, Blair County Historical Society, Historic Hollidaysburg Inc., Rails to Trails of Central PA, and many others for grant distribution.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Lehigh Valley Community Foundation: Pennsylvania community foundation serving Lehigh and Northampton counties with charitable fund management, scholarships, and nonprofit grants. Directly comparable in scope, governance, and donor services to CPCF.
• The Pittsburgh Foundation: Major Pennsylvania community foundation administering hundreds of charitable funds, scholarships, and grants across the Pittsburgh region. Directly comparable as a PA-based community foundation with the same fund management, scholarship, and grantmaking model as CPCF.
• Lancaster County Community Foundation: Pennsylvania community foundation managing donor-advised funds, scholarships, and competitive grants across Lancaster County. Closely comparable to CPCF in structure, mission, and regional grantmaking focus.
• The Philadelphia Foundation: Pennsylvania's oldest community foundation, managing donor funds, scholarships, and grants for the Greater Philadelphia region. Comparable in mission and structure, though operating at materially larger scale than CPCF.
• Erie Community Foundation: Pennsylvania community foundation managing donor funds, scholarships, and grant programs across the Erie region. Comparable as a PA community foundation with similar fund management and competitive grant cycles.
• Foundation for Enhancing Communities: Central Pennsylvania community foundation serving the Harrisburg/Capital Region with donor-advised funds, scholarships, and competitive grants. Directly comparable as a same-state regional community foundation.
• Community Foundation of the Alleghenies: Western Pennsylvania community foundation managing funds, scholarships, and grants across the Allegheny region. Strong comparable as a similar-sized PA community foundation operating in a comparable rural/small-metro geography.
• York County Community Foundation: Central Pennsylvania community foundation administering charitable funds, scholarships, and grants for York County. Directly comparable regional peer operating with the same community foundation model.

Broad incumbents

• Fidelity Charitable: The largest U.S. donor-advised fund sponsor, offering national-scale giving accounts that compete with community foundations for individual donors and planned-giving assets, including those in Central Pennsylvania.
• Schwab Charitable: Major national donor-advised fund sponsor providing low-friction charitable accounts to individual donors. Competes with community foundations like CPCF for donor dollars that could otherwise flow to local funds.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/centralpagives
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/central-pennsylvania-community-foundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/centralpagives

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation