community foundation of southwest kansas

What community foundation of southwest kansas does

The Community Foundation of Southwest Kansas (CFSK) is a 501(c)(3) public charity headquartered in Dodge City, Kansas, that serves as the primary organized philanthropic vehicle for the Southwest Kansas region. The foundation pools charitable capital from individuals, families, businesses, and other foundations and manages it primarily as perpetual endowments, disbursing only net income while preserving principal. It offers a comprehensive suite of fund types — Field of Interest, Donor-Advised, Designated, and Unrestricted Funds — alongside multiple gift mechanisms including outright gifts, bequests, life insurance gifts, memorial gifts, and charitable lead and remainder trusts.

The foundation distributes capital through three core programmatic channels: an annual grant cycle (September 1–October 1) for non-profit organizations, schools, and government entities in Southwest Kansas, with a dedicated focus on children's issues; a scholarship program (December 1–February 1) covering education, medical, music, agribusiness, photography, and graphic arts fields, including named scholarships such as the Juanita Abell Pyle award; and the Women of Inspiration fund, a committee-led vertical established in 2011 dedicated to women's educational, social, cultural, health, and civic resources. Online donations are accepted at tiers from $25 to $1,000 via a digital platform supporting one-time, monthly, or yearly contributions.

The organization is governed by a volunteer board of directors elected to staggered terms, supported by a small professional staff of three — Ryan Ausmus (Executive Director), Aaron Barnes (Program Director), and Margaret Hamilton (Development Director). Investments are overseen by an Investment Committee with independent annual CPA audits. The technology stack is minimal: a Wix-hosted website and an online donation tool, with no proprietary platforms, applications, APIs, or AI capabilities. The foundation's competitive position rests on decades of regional brand presence, community relationships, and the tax-advantaged status of charitable giving, with no geographic or vertical expansion initiatives disclosed.

Name

community foundation of southwest kansas

Legal name

Community Foundation of Southwest Kansas

Website

https://communityfoundationswks.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Community Foundation of Southwest Kansas is a 501(c)(3) public charity based in Dodge City, Kansas, that pools donations from individuals, families, and businesses into perpetual endowments and distributes grants, scholarships, and targeted funds across the Southwest Kansas region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Philanthropy Services

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

College Access, Scholarships & Student Success Nonprofits (BPAGADAE), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), Fundraising & Annual Giving (EDALAOAB)

Keywords

• Community foundation services
• Endowment fund management
• Charitable grant programs
• Scholarship administration
• Donor-advised funds

Headquarters

HQ city

Dodge City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Charitable Gifts and Donations: The foundation receives gifts of various forms including cash, real estate, stocks, appreciated assets, and long-term trusts within estate plans. These contributions are pooled into endowment funds designed to provide perpetual support for charitable causes. Only investment income is disbursed while principal remains intact.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

The Community Foundation of Southwest Kansas is a nonprofit philanthropic organization that manages pooled endowment funds, accepts charitable contributions from donors, and distributes grants and scholarships to nonprofit organizations and students across southwest Kansas. It stewards donor-advised funds and field-of-interest funds while providing a perpetual structure for charitable giving in the region.

Product overview

The Community Foundation of Southwest Kansas operates as a unified charitable giving platform offering endowment fund management, grant programs, and scholarship programs. The core offering consists of various fund types (Field of Interest, Donor-Advised, Designated, and Unrestricted Funds) managed as perpetual endowments. The foundation also provides multiple gift mechanisms including outright gifts, bequests, life insurance gifts, memorial gifts, and charitable trusts (Lead and Remainder). Supplementary programs include a grant program for non-profits and schools, a scholarship program covering multiple fields of study, and the Women of Inspiration fund. An online donation platform enables recurring and one-time contributions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Women of Inspiration Fund
• Student Scholarship Program
• Donor-Advised Funds
• Community Grants Program
• Endowment Fund Management

Quantifiable outcome

• Scholarship recipients attend 30-35 different colleges each year

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Schwab Charitable: Major national donor-advised fund program affiliated with Charles Schwab, providing low-cost DAF accounts and investment management. Comparable to CFSK's donor-advised fund product but at vastly greater scale and digital sophistication.
• Fidelity Charitable: Largest national donor-advised fund sponsor offering digital-first giving, broad investment options, and access to thousands of charities. Represents the scaled national competitor CFSK faces for donor dollars.
• Kansas Health Foundation: Large Kansas-focused private foundation providing grants and programmatic funding for community health and wellbeing. Operates in the same state with overlapping grantmaking priorities around community quality of life.

Direct peers

• Greater Kansas City Community Foundation: Larger Kansas-area community foundation administering endowment funds, scholarships, and competitive grant cycles. Operates the same perpetual-endowment community foundation model as CFSK, with a broader metro footprint.
• Western Kansas Community Foundation: Community foundation serving western Kansas with similar grantmaking, scholarship, and donor-advised fund services to CFSK. Most directly comparable in geographic scope and rural operating environment.
• Wichita Community Foundation: Another Kansas-based community foundation offering donor-advised funds, grants, and scholarships across a defined regional geography with pooled endowment management. Directly comparable in operating model and donor services.

Regional players

• Heartland Community Foundation: Community foundation serving a rural/regional geography with pooled charitable assets, grant programs, and donor services. Comparable structure though operates in a different region.
• Dodge City Community College Foundation: Local educational foundation administering scholarships and endowments for a Dodge City-area institution. Comparable in scholarship administration and community fundraising within the same geographic market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/community-foundation-of-southwest-kansas

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 community foundation of southwest kansas