Northern New York Community Foundation

What Northern New York Community Foundation does

The Northern New York Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) community foundation founded in 1929 and headquartered at the Northern New York Philanthropy Center in Watertown, New York. It stewards an endowment and a portfolio of named charitable funds to award grants and scholarships across Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties—a 315-mile tri-county region in Northern New York. Its core operating activities are: (1) endowment and fund management on behalf of individual, family, corporate, and estate donors; (2) competitive grantmaking through the county-based "Grants for Good" program, which serves 150+ nonprofit partners; and (3) scholarship administration, which disbursed $1.56 million to 743 graduating high school seniors in 2025 at an average of $2,100 per student.

The Foundation's product surface is organized around grantmaking, scholarship administration, and a tiered youth philanthropy pipeline. Grant products include the county-based Grants for Good program and endowed charitable funds such as the Rock Charitable Fund (est. 2019; nearly $876,258 awarded to 59 projects across 54 St. Lawrence County organizations), the CAR-FRESHNER Corporation Charitable Fund (est. late 2024; up to $100,000 in annual grants), and the Potsdam Community Fund (est. 2026 with $350,000 in launch capital). Youth programs include the Youth Philanthropy Council (chartered 2010; 155 grants totaling $285,070; $20,000 annual grant budget), the Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge (grades 7-9, 149 grants totaling $100,000 since launch), the LEAD Giving Circle for ages 18-40, the Summer Youth Philanthropy Experience, and Canstruction for Northern New York. Distribution is primarily regional, executed through an online grant portal, direct school partnerships with 8+ area high schools, and nonprofit partner programs.

The Foundation's economic model is non-commercial: it does not sell products or services and generates no pricing-based revenue. It is funded by donor contributions, estate bequests, and corporate sponsorships, and deploys capital through grants and scholarships. Corporate and financial-sector sponsors (Community Bank N.A., Watertown Savings Bank, Carthage Savings and Loan, Hyde-Stone, Morgia Wealth Management, RBC Wealth Management, Renzi Foodservice, BCA Architects) provide recurring support for specific programs. The Foundation is governed by a Board of Directors and operated by a small staff of approximately 1-10 employees, including President and CEO Rande S. Richardson.

Name

Northern New York Community Foundation

Legal name

Northern New York Community Foundation

Website

https://nnycf.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1929

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Northern New York Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) community foundation founded in 1929 in Watertown, New York, that stewards an endowment and portfolio of charitable funds to award grants and scholarships across Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties. It serves 150+ nonprofit partners, administers a $1.56M annual scholarship program for 743 graduating seniors, and operates a tiered youth philanthropy pipeline spanning middle school through young professionals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Foundation Services

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

Keywords

• Community philanthropy
• Endowment management
• Grantmaking services
• Scholarship administration
• Youth philanthropy

Headquarters

HQ city

Watertown

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donor Contributions and Endowments: The foundation receives charitable gifts from individuals, families, businesses, and organizations who establish endowed funds or make outright gifts to support community causes. Donors contribute to various named funds including community betterment funds, scholarship funds, and geographic-specific funds.
2. Grants Management: The foundation awards grants from its endowment and collection of funds to nonprofit organizations serving Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties. Grants support various sectors including arts, education, health, human services, recreation, and community development.
3. Scholarship Administration: The foundation administers scholarship programs for graduating high school seniors in the tri-county region. In 2025, awarded $1.56 million in scholarship support to 743 graduating seniors, with an average award of $2,100 per student.

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Northern New York Community Foundation is a nonprofit community foundation established in 1929 that manages charitable endowment funds and distributes grants and scholarships to support community needs across Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties. It administers a portfolio of endowed funds and donor-advised funds, makes grants to nonprofit organizations, awards scholarships to graduating high school seniors, and operates youth philanthropy programs such as the Youth Philanthropy Council and the Summer Youth Philanthropy Experience.

Product overview

The Northern New York Community Foundation operates as a philanthropic organization offering a portfolio of youth development programs and community grantmaking services. Its core programs include the Youth Philanthropy Council (chartered 2010), LEAD Giving Circle for young professionals, Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge for middle school students, Summer Youth Philanthropy Experience, and Canstruction for Northern New York food security initiative. The Foundation also manages endowed charitable funds including the CAR-FRESHNER Corporation Charitable Fund, Rock Charitable Fund, and Potsdam Community Fund. The Foundation's primary services are grantmaking through its 'Grants for Good' county-based programs and administering scholarships, having awarded $1.56 million to 743 seniors in 2025. These programs collectively serve Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties and are accessed through online grant and scholarship portals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Since 2010, the Youth Philanthropy Council has awarded 155 grants totaling $285,070
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• CAR-FRESHNER CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 December 2024In late 2024, CAR-FRESHNER Corporation partnered with the Community Foundation to establish the CAR-FRESHNER Corporation Charitable Fund. The fund supports community programs, projects and initiatives, with up to $100,000 in grant funding available for 2026.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Maine Community Foundation: Statewide rural-focused community foundation serving all of Maine with endowed funds, scholarships, and competitive grant cycles. Analogous rural-serving mission and tri-county scale model applied at a larger geography.
• Community Foundation of Greater Rochester: Larger and more established NY community foundation with a much broader geographic scope and bigger endowment. Comparable business model (endowment, grantmaking, scholarships) but at materially larger scale.
• Vermont Community Foundation: Statewide VT community foundation with grantmaking, scholarship administration, and youth philanthropy programs. Larger scale but highly analogous operating structure and mission to NNYCF.

Others

• Fidelity Charitable: Large national donor-advised fund sponsor. Competes for major estate gifts that might otherwise flow to local community foundations, and represents an indirect alternative giving vehicle that NNYCF must position against.
• Scholarship America: National nonprofit scholarship administrator and management services provider. Relevant adjacent peer where the foundation might outsource or compare scholarship administration infrastructure.

Regional players

• Otsego County Community Foundation: Single-county NY community foundation serving Otsego County. Smaller scale but same community foundation model with grants and scholarships for a rural upstate NY population.

Direct peers

• Chautauqua Region Community Foundation: Western NY community foundation providing grants, scholarships, and donor stewardship to a multi-county rural region. Comparable size and operating model to NNYCF.
• Community Foundations of the Hudson Valley: Multi-county NY community foundation operating similarly to NNYCF across several Hudson Valley counties with endowed funds and scholarship administration.
• Central New York Community Foundation: Regional community foundation serving the Syracuse/CNY area with endowment, grantmaking, and scholarship programs. Closest geographic and functional peer as another NY-based community foundation with comparable grant and scholarship mission.
• Adirondack Community Foundation: Rural NY community foundation covering the Adirondack region, with permanent endowments, scholarships, and competitive grants. Highly comparable due to rural NY geography and similar tri-county scale operation.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/nnycf
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nnycf
• Instagraminstagram.com/nnycommunityfoundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Northern New York Community Foundation