ashland county community foundation

What ashland county community foundation does

Ashland County Community Foundation (ACCF) is an Ohio-based 501(c)(3) public charity founded in 1995 to manage charitable funds and channel philanthropic capital into Ashland County. It administers more than 800 endowment funds - including donor-advised, donor-designated, field-of-interest, scholarship, agency, and unrestricted fund types - and serves three primary constituencies: individual/family and organizational donors seeking professionally managed charitable giving vehicles; nonprofit organizations receiving community grants and holding agency endowment funds (99 agency partners as of the latest disclosure); and students receiving scholarships and interest-free educational loans. ACCF has cumulatively returned more than $40 million to the Ashland County community through grants, scholarships, and distributions.

ACCF's core products are organized around endowment fund management and grantmaking: Community Grants (now restructured under Grants 2.0 into Quick Action grants up to $10,000 year-round and Quarterly grants above $10,000), Teacher Mini-Grants up to $2,000, a Scholarship Program administering 353 awards totaling $593,803 in 2026, interest-free Educational Loans (including the Dr. Gilbert Hess and Stephen M. Pealer programs), and programmatic sub-brands including the Women's Fund, IMPACT Youth Council, Janet L. Archer Summer Fellowship Program, and the affiliate Ashland City Schools Foundation. Its technology platform consists of the GrantInterface-based online grants and scholarship management systems, and its investment portfolio is anchored in low-fee Vanguard index funds overseen by a Finance Committee.

ACCF's revenue model is donation-based and fee-based: it receives charitable contributions in cash, stock, real estate, retirement assets, life insurance, and life income vehicles; generates investment income on the pooled endowment; and assesses an annual fund administration fee deducted from each fund balance. Its go-to-market is community-led, relying on local professional advisor referrals, community events, podcast and newsletter outreach, and the foundation's website (ashlandforgood.org). The foundation holds the Council on Foundations' National Standards certification and operates exclusively within Ashland County, Ohio.

Name

ashland county community foundation

Legal name

Ashland County Community Foundation

Website

https://ashlandforgood.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Foundation / Philanthropic Services

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Philanthropy & Foundations Advisory (Donor-Advised Funds, Endowments) (FSAAABAH), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), College Access, Scholarships & Student Success Nonprofits (BPAGADAE)

Keywords

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

Headquarters

HQ city

Ashland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Charitable Contributions and Donations: Receives gifts from donors including cash, stock, real estate, retirement plan assets, life insurance, bequests, and life income gifts. Donations are invested in endowment funds rather than spent.
2. Investment Income Distribution: Endowment funds are invested and generate income used for annual grants and scholarships. Primary pool held in Vanguard index funds.
3. Fund Administration Fees: Annual fee charged to each fund to cover costs associated with administering the fund. Fee is deducted from the fund balance.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Ashland County Community Foundation manages charitable endowment funds and distributes the resulting income as grants, scholarships, and educational loans across Ashland County, Ohio. It accepts donations in cash, stock, real estate, and other assets, invests them in low-fee Vanguard index funds, and operates multiple fund types (Donor-Advised, Designated, Field of Interest, Agency, Scholarship, and Unrestricted) to support nonprofit organizations and students.

Product overview

Ashland County Community Foundation operates as a regional philanthropic organization offering a comprehensive suite of endowment and grantmaking services. The core offerings include endowment fund management with multiple fund types (Donor-Advised, Donor Designated, Field of Interest, Agency, Scholarship, and Unrestricted), a Scholarship Program with online application system, Educational Loans, and Community Grants (Quick Action and Quarterly). Supporting programs include the Women's Fund (with grants, scholarships, EmpowHer Giving Circle, and Childcare Initiative), IMPACT Youth Council (student-led grantmaking), and the Janet L. Archer Summer Fellowship Program. The Ashland City Schools Foundation operates as an affiliate. All services are delivered through online platforms for scholarship and grant applications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Women's Fund: A fund of Ashland County Community Foundation focused on women helping women find power and purpose, established in 2004
• IMPACT Youth Council
• Janet L. Archer Summer Fellowship Program
• Ashland City Schools Foundation

Products and services

• Endowment Fund Management
• Donor-Advised Funds
• Donor Designated Funds
• Field of Interest Funds
• Scholarship Funds (Endowed)
• Agency Funds
• Unrestricted Funds
• Scholarship Program
• Educational Loans
• Community Grants (Grants 2.0)
• Teacher Mini-Grants
• IMPACT Youth Council Program
• Women's Fund
• Janet L. Archer Summer Fellowship Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $40 million returned to Ashland County community
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 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

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Ashland Area Chamber of CommercecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partner in the Janet L. Archer Summer Fellowship Program, drawing on complementary strengths to build skills of young professionals while strengthening local nonprofits
• United Way of Ashland CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partner in the Janet L. Archer Summer Fellowship Program, providing financial support and working alongside ACCF and Chamber of Commerce
• Ashland City Schools FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAffiliate organization that became part of ACCF in 2024. ACSF generates and endows funds to promote excellence in academics, arts, and athletics for Ashland City School District students and educators
• 99 Agency PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNonprofit organizations with agency endowment funds at ACCF including Ashland Family YMCA, Hospice of North Central Ohio, Associated Charities, and many others providing ongoing income for operations and programs

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Fidelity Charitable: The largest national donor-advised fund sponsor, competing directly for the same donor dollars ACCF pursues. Not a community foundation, but a key substitute for ACCF's donor-advised fund product, especially for donors with assets outside Ashland County.

Broad incumbents

• The Cleveland Foundation: The oldest community foundation in the U.S., based in Ohio. Shares ACCF's donor-advised fund, scholarship, and competitive grant model, but with substantially larger AUM and broader programmatic reach.
• Greater Cincinnati Foundation: A larger southwestern Ohio community foundation with donor-advised funds, scholarship programs, and women's and youth-focused initiatives — overlapping sub-brands with ACCF (e.g., Women's Fund, IMPACT-style youth giving).
• The Columbus Foundation: One of the largest community foundations in the U.S., headquartered in central Ohio. Overlaps heavily with ACCF in fund types (DAFs, scholarships, agency funds) and grantmaking approach, but operates at materially greater scale.
• Dayton Foundation: A mid-size Ohio community foundation offering endowed funds, scholarships, and competitive grants across the Dayton region; comparable service architecture with a larger operational footprint than ACCF.

Direct peers

• Licking County Foundation: A central Ohio community foundation operating donor-advised, scholarship, and agency funds with comparable staffing scale and a similar community-grant application process.
• Marion Community Foundation: An Ohio-based community foundation of similar scale offering endowed funds, scholarships, and competitive community grants to nonprofits in Marion County. Highly comparable in fund types and grantmaking programs.
• Richland County Foundation: A community foundation serving an adjacent Ohio county (Richland/Mansfield area), with a comparable small-staff model, donor-advised and scholarship funds, and community grantmaking. Closest geographic and operational analogue to ACCF.
• Wayne County Community Foundation: A small Ohio county community foundation administering scholarships, agency funds, and donor-advised funds for a single rural county — near-identical operating model to ACCF.

Regional players

• Toledo Community Foundation: A larger Ohio community foundation serving the Toledo region with overlapping scholarship, agency-fund, and competitive grant programs; operates in a different geography but with a directly comparable service mix.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Ashland-County-Community-Foundation-136737142028/?__tn__=%2Cd%2CP-R&eid=ARAvAv2yYoCPmuNt2l1Kvn29u_Xhz1A457A9fM1Aaa-meXEJWrTr6V11s07kBXDs42l4d8gCHvYUYK17
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/2755592
• Instagraminstagram.com/ashlandforgood

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about ashland county community foundation