Stark Community Foundation

What Stark Community Foundation does

Stark Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity community foundation established in 1963 and headquartered at 400 Market Avenue North in Canton, Ohio. The foundation manages more than 1,020 charitable funds holding approximately $478 million in total assets (2025 preliminary and unaudited) and has awarded nearly $297 million in cumulative grants since inception. It serves Stark and Carroll counties in Ohio, providing donor advised funds, organization endowment funds, scholarship funds, supporting foundation services, and community-responsive grant programs. Customer segments span individuals and families, professional advisors, businesses, neighborhoods, nonprofits, and students, supported through personalized donor services, competitive grantmaking, scholarship administration, and data-informed community initiatives such as the Stark County Community Assessment.

The foundation's operating model is community-led and relationship-based, generating operating revenue through charitable contributions and gifts plus an administrative fee schedule applied to managed charitable funds. It operates with a lean 19-person staff and a Board of Directors, with no parent corporation or external ownership. Distribution occurs through self-serve digital channels (donor portal, online grant interface, website), direct engagement with donors and grantees, and in-person community events across the region. The foundation has assembled a multi-affiliate ecosystem that includes the wholly-owned Carroll County Foundation plus supporting foundations such as the Henry and Louise Timken Foundation, Health Foundation of Greater Massillon, and Massillon Community Charitable Fund, and it ranks in the top 10 percent of community foundations in the United States by national benchmarks.

Strategically, the foundation has expanded its programmatic and geographic footprint through partnerships with Canton Student Loan Foundation, Prescription Assistance Network of Stark County, and North Canton Medical Foundation, and through targeted initiatives such as the Protecting Stark's Future 2026 cycle addressing child poverty. Technology surface is limited to standard web, portal, and content channels with no disclosed AI/ML, API, or proprietary software capabilities. There are no technology products or SaaS offerings; the foundation's "products" are philanthropic services, including charitable planning, fund management, investment management, grant programs, and scholarship administration.

Name

Stark Community Foundation

Legal name

Stark Community Foundation

Website

https://starkcf.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1963

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Stark Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) community foundation established in 1963 in Canton, Ohio, managing over 1,020 charitable funds and approximately $478 million in assets for donors, nonprofits, students, and neighborhoods across Stark and Carroll counties through philanthropic services and grantmaking.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Foundation and Philanthropic Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA), Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK), College Access, Scholarships & Student Success Nonprofits (BPAGADAE)

Keywords

• Community foundation services
• Charitable fund management
• Donor advised funds
• Grantmaking programs
• Scholarship administration

Headquarters

HQ city

Canton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Charitable Contributions and Gifts: The foundation receives charitable gifts and contributions from donors who establish various types of charitable funds. These contributions form the asset base that the foundation manages and deploys for charitable purposes.
2. Administrative Fee Schedule: The foundation charges administrative fees for managing charitable funds according to a published fee schedule. These fees support the operational costs of fund management, investment oversight, and donor services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Stark Community Foundation is a nonprofit community foundation that manages over 1,020 charitable funds on behalf of individual, family, and corporate donors in Stark and Carroll counties, Ohio. It invests those funds, distributes competitive grants to nonprofits through programs such as the Community Responsive Grants Program, and administers scholarship opportunities to students. The foundation also provides charitable planning, fund management, investment management, and supporting foundation services, with $478M in total assets and $297M in cumulative grants since 1963.

Product overview

Stark Community Foundation is a community foundation organization, not a technology product company. It provides charitable giving services including donor fund management, competitive grantmaking programs, scholarship distribution, and neighborhood empowerment initiatives. The organization does not offer technology products or software as a service — its 'products' are philanthropic services such as charitable planning, fund establishment, grant programs, and scholarship opportunities for Stark and Carroll counties in Ohio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Donor Advised Funds Charitable giving funds that allow individual, family, and corporate donors in Stark and Carroll counties to make tax-advantaged contributions and recommend grants to nonprofits of their choice over time.
• Organization Endowment Funds Endowment funds established by nonprofit organizations in Stark and Carroll counties to build long-term financial sustainability and generate ongoing income for their missions.
• Scholarship Funds Donor-established scholarship funds providing nearly 100 scholarship opportunities to students in Stark and Carroll counties pursuing higher education and career pathways.
• Supporting Foundations Supporting foundations established at Stark Community Foundation that benefit from the foundation's administrative and investment oversight while maintaining their own philanthropic focus, such as the Henry and Louise Timken Foundation.
• Charitable Planning Services Personalized charitable planning services for donors, including planned giving, estate planning, and legacy society membership to help donors achieve unique charitable goals.
• Investment Management Services Professional investment management of charitable fund assets, designed to maximize returns with minimal risk for donors and supporting foundations across Stark and Carroll counties.
• Community Responsive Grants Program Competitive grant program providing funding to nonprofit organizations in Stark and Carroll counties to strengthen community programs and address local needs.
• Corporate Services Corporate giving programs, employee engagement, and charitable alignment strategies for businesses seeking to enhance their caring image, maximize tax advantages, and engage employees through philanthropy.
• Private Foundation Services Administrative and operational services for private foundations, providing an alternative to operating a private foundation independently, with access to the foundation's investment management and grantmaking infrastructure.
• Neighborhood Grants and Leadership Training Neighborhood grants, resident leadership training, and collaborative support for neighborhood organizations seeking to address local issues and strengthen their communities.
• Community Leadership Initiatives Data-informed community leadership initiatives and research, including the Stark County Community Assessment, the Protecting Stark's Future 2026 cycle ($322,500 investment for child poverty projects), and other programs addressing the region's most challenging needs.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly $300 million in grants awarded since 1963
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Canton Student Loan FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 March 2014Partnership to provide low-interest student loans to Stark County students. The Canton Student Loan Foundation established a fund at Stark Community Foundation to assist with their mission of providing educational financing. CSLF has awarded more than $28.5 million in student loans and helps over 1,200 local students each year.
• Prescription Assistance Network of Stark CountycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 March 2014Prescription Assistance Network established a fund at Stark Community Foundation to perpetuate their work providing access to prescription medications and education to vulnerable community members. PAN has filled more than 85,000 prescriptions with a value of more than $7 million since opening.
• George H. and Anna Casper Scholarship TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 October 2013Partnership with Canton Student Loan Foundation to offer low-interest graduate school loans using funds from the George H. and Anna Casper Scholarship Trust, the first education fund established at SCF in 1972.
• North Canton Medical FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 September 2013North Canton Medical Foundation made a major investment establishing a fund at Stark Community Foundation to financially support local health and wellness programs for generations. This was the second largest investment in SCF's 50-year history, bringing total assets to more than $193 million at that time.
• Henry and Louise Timken FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1980Supporting foundation of Stark Community Foundation since 1980. Has consistently invested in Stark County with focus on medical vision services, aviation, and the arts. Recently funded Luna, an explosive detection dog for Akron-Canton Airport.
• Women's FundcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPermanent endowment fund of Stark Community Foundation benefiting women and families through grants supporting economic, educational, physical, emotional, social, artistic, and personal growth programs.
• Massillon Area Community Civic Trust FundcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerComponent fund of Stark Community Foundation for the benefit of projects and organizations in the Massillon area. Since inception, more than $50,000 has been distributed for Massillon community benefit.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Akron Community Foundation: Northeast Ohio community foundation serving Summit County, geographically adjacent to Stark County. Offers the same suite of charitable services (DAFs, scholarships, competitive grants) to a similar donor base of individuals, families, businesses, and professional advisors.
• Cleveland Foundation: The first community foundation in the US (1914) and a major Ohio peer. Both are 501(c)(3) community foundations managing charitable assets, providing donor advised funds, scholarships, and competitive grantmaking across Ohio regions.
• The Dayton Foundation: Ohio-based community foundation serving the Dayton region. Operates donor advised funds, scholarship programs, and competitive grantmaking — directly analogous to Stark CF's service mix and donor segments.
• Toledo Community Foundation: Northwest Ohio community foundation with a comparable regional charter, fund management, scholarship, and grantmaking structure. Directly comparable as a mid-sized Ohio community foundation.
• Greater Cincinnati Foundation: Regional community foundation serving the Greater Cincinnati area with comparable products (donor advised funds, scholarships, competitive grants, supporting foundations) and a similar nonprofit operating model.
• Columbus Foundation: One of the largest community foundations in the US, also based in Ohio. Directly comparable as a multi-county community foundation offering donor advised funds, competitive grant cycles, scholarships, and community leadership programs.

Emerging players

• Foundation Source: National provider of private foundation administrative services. Comparable in providing fund administration, investment oversight, and back-office services to private foundations and philanthropists — an alternative to establishing a fund at a community foundation.

Broad incumbents

• National Philanthropic Trust: One of the largest national independent donor-advised fund sponsors. Competes with Stark CF for charitable giving dollars via low-cost DAFs with national investment menus and online account management.
• Fidelity Charitable: The largest national donor-advised fund sponsor. While not a community foundation, it competes directly for donor-advised fund dollars and represents the structural competitive threat to local community foundations' DAF business.

Regional players

• The Pittsburgh Foundation: Large community foundation in adjacent western Pennsylvania. Comparable products and donor segments but serves a different metropolitan market; useful as a scale benchmark for what a mature regional community foundation can achieve.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/tweet
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCY_gFvbZjZCrm_AkDDREBxw
• Facebookfacebook.com/StarkCommFdn
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stark-community-foundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/starkcommfdn

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Stark Community Foundation