Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization

What Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization does

The Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization (IFCO) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in September 1967 in New York as the first national foundation led by people of color in the United States. Its core service portfolio is built around four programs: a Fiscal Sponsorship Program providing 501(c)(3) administrative infrastructure to grassroots progressive organizations (charging a 10% administrative fee on processed income); the ELAM Medical Scholarship Program, for which IFCO is the sole US facilitator designated by the Cuban Ministry of Public Health, channeling US students into tuition-free medical training at the Latin American School of Medicine in Havana with a service-back commitment to underserved US communities; Friendshipment Caravans, volunteer-organized humanitarian and solidarity delegations to Cuba and Central America that have run 31 times since 1992; and an Education and Training Program that delivers community organizing curricula built on the See-Analyze-Act methodology rooted in liberation theology and popular education.

The organization's underlying operating model is relationship- and movement-driven rather than technology-driven; there is no proprietary software platform, and program delivery relies on community organizing networks, faith-based constituencies, and direct volunteer mobilization. IFCO generates revenue through individual donations and institutional grants (the primary stream) plus a 10% administrative fee on fiscal sponsorship inflows. It serves four primary segments: grassroots progressive organizations needing fiscal sponsorship, low-income BIPOC youth seeking medical education, faith-based organizations seeking social justice training, and broader social justice movements engaged in immigration, anti-war, environmental, and international solidarity work. As of 2025, leadership transitioned with Rev. Claudia De la Cruz, MDiv./MSW, becoming Executive Director, bringing prior co-executive directorship of The People's Forum NYC and pastoral experience at Iglesia San Romero de Las Américas - UCC.

Name

Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization

Legal name

Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization

Website

https://ifconews.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1967

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

IFCO is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1967 providing fiscal sponsorship to grassroots organizations, facilitating ELAM medical scholarships for US students in Cuba, organizing solidarity caravans, and delivering community education to social justice movements.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Justice Non-Profit Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Civic and Social Organizations (813410), Other Similar Organizations (except Business, Professional, Labor, and Political Organizations) (81399)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), International & Local Implementing NGOs (HLAJAKAD), Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

Keywords

• Fiscal sponsorship services
• Medical scholarship program
• Humanitarian aid caravans
• Community organizing education
• Social justice nonprofit

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: IFCO receives donations from individual supporters and institutional grants to fund its operations and programs including fiscal sponsorships, ELAM scholarships, and solidarity campaigns.
2. Fiscal Sponsorship Administrative Fees: IFCO charges a 10% administrative fee on all income processed through their 501(c)(3) status on behalf of sponsored grassroots projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

IFCO operates as a 501(c)(3) non-profit foundation providing fiscal sponsorship services that allow grassroots organizations to operate under its tax-exempt status, administers full medical scholarships for US citizens at the Latin American School of Medicine (ELAM) in Cuba, organizes Friendshipment Caravans delivering humanitarian aid to Cuba and Central America, and delivers leadership development and community organizing education using the See-Analyze-Act methodology.

Product overview

IFCO offers a portfolio of social justice programs centered on four core services: the Fiscal Sponsorship Program providing administrative and financial infrastructure for grassroots organizations; the ELAM Scholarship Program facilitating full medical scholarships for US students at Cuba's Latin American School of Medicine; Friendshipment Caravans organizing people-to-people solidarity delegations and humanitarian aid shipments to Cuba; and the Education and Training Program delivering leadership development and community organizing capacity building. These interconnected programs work together to advance justice, equity, and self-determination for marginalized communities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fiscal Sponsorship Program Administrative and financial support services that allow grassroots organizations without their own 501(c)(3) status to operate under IFCO's tax-exempt umbrella, including grant management, tax compliance, and financial reporting for a 10% administrative fee.
• ELAM (Latin American School of Medicine) Scholarship Program Full scholarship program facilitating US citizens to study medicine at the Latin American School of Medicine in Havana, Cuba, covering tuition, room, board, textbooks, and a monthly stipend, with graduates committed to serving underserved US communities.
• Friendshipment Caravans People-to-people solidarity delegations and humanitarian aid caravans organized by IFCO/Pastors for Peace to deliver supplies to Cuba and Central America, challenging US blockades and embargoes while building international solidarity.
• Education and Training Program Request-based educational programming delivering leadership development, community organizing training, and capacity building for faith-based and grassroots organizations, using the See-Analyze-Act methodology grounded in liberation theology and popular education.
• Cuba Humanitarian Aid Shipment Humanitarian aid initiative sending medical equipment, medicines, surgical supplies, and essential goods to Cuba to support communities affected by the US-imposed blockade, with a 60,000-pound shipment planned for summer 2026.

Quantifiable outcome

• 245 US ELAM graduates practicing medicine, with 144 as physicians in residency/training across 30+ states
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• Congressional Black CaucusmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2000IFCO organized Congressional delegations to Cuba, which led to President Castro's offer of 500 scholarships for US students in September 2000. The CBC continues to support ELAM and Cuba solidarity efforts.
• Cuban Ministry of Public HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1999IFCO/Pastors for Peace is the sole organization in the US designated by the Cuban Ministry of Health to facilitate the ELAM medical scholarship for US candidates. This partnership enables the administration of full scholarships for US students to study at the Latin American School of Medicine in Havana.
• Jericho MovementminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGrassroots organization focused on freeing all political prisoners, operating under IFCO's fiscal sponsorship program.
• Right to SurviveminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGrassroots organization operating under IFCO's fiscal sponsorship with focus on survival rights and social justice.
• Claudia Jones School for Political EducationminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPolitical education organization operating under IFCO's fiscal sponsorship program.
• Proliber Tad Freedom CampaignminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFreedom campaign organization operating under IFCO's fiscal sponsorship.
• World Health Organization (WHO)coreOthersELAM is fully accredited by WHO as the recognized body that accredits all international schools of medicine.
• Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG)coreOthersECFMG oversees licensing requirements for medical students who study outside the US. ECFMG fully recognizes medical schools certified by their government's Ministry of Health, enabling ELAM graduates to practice in the US after passing USMLE exams.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Grassroots International: Fiscal sponsor and grantmaking organization supporting global social justice movements, with particular focus on land rights, food sovereignty, and Indigenous/Black movements. Closely comparable fiscal sponsorship model and BIPOC-led grantmaking.
• The People's Forum: NYC-based movement hub co-founded by IFCO's current Executive Director, Rev. Claudia De la Cruz. Comparable as a movement-ecosystem organization with cultural, educational, and political programming serving progressive movements.
• Pastors for Peace: Operates as a project of IFCO, organizing the Friendshipment Caravans to Cuba. Shares the same Cuba-solidarity mission, donor base, and leadership pipeline, making it the most directly comparable peer.
• Code Pink: Women-led grassroots organization focused on anti-war activism, US-Cuba relations, and progressive foreign policy. Comparable in constituency, advocacy model, and movement-building approach, though focused on peace specifically rather than broader community organizing.

Broad incumbents

• American Friends Service Committee: Large US Quaker-affiliated nonprofit with international solidarity programs, peace and justice work, and humanitarian aid shipments. Comparable as a faith-rooted, justice-focused organization operating internationally with a much broader institutional footprint.
• Center for Constitutional Rights: Progressive legal advocacy organization supporting social justice movements through litigation and organizing support. Comparable as a movement infrastructure organization with overlapping grassroots constituency and Cuba-related legal work.

Emerging players

• National Lawyers Guild: Progressive legal association supporting movement lawyers and providing fiscal sponsorship-like support to allied activist projects. Comparable as a movement infrastructure organization with overlapping constituency and progressive political identity.

Regional players

• Witness for Peace (Fellowship of Reconciliation): Faith-rooted organization focused on Latin America solidarity, US policy advocacy, and accompaniment delegations. Comparable in faith-based mobilization, Latin America focus, and delegation model, though historically focused on Central America more than Cuba.

Others

• National Network of Fiscal Sponsors: Industry association that supports and convenes fiscal sponsor organizations. Highly relevant as a peer ecosystem/membership body for IFCO's Fiscal Sponsorship Program, though it is an industry convener rather than a direct competitor.
• Latin American School of Medicine (ELAM): The Cuban medical school itself, operated by the Cuban Ministry of Public Health. Functions as the upstream partner rather than a competitor, but provides the institutional infrastructure for IFCO's ELAM Scholarship Program and is the primary counterparty in the program.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ifcop4p
• Instagraminstagram.com/p/DZae92hmhSM
• Xx.com/ifcop4p
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/interreligious-foundation

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization