A field of interest endowment is a charitable fund from which grants are targeted to a particular cause or purpose designated by the donor. The donor decides the fund’s focus, such as education, the arts, animal welfare or the environment, and grants from the fund are always made to organizations and programs in that selected field. A geographic area such as a county may also serve as a field of interest.

Why establish a field of interest endowment?

A field of interest endowment is a uniquely personal giving option that brings you right to the heart of an issue that moves you. By establishing a field of interest fund, you can focus your giving on a specific area of concern and be assured of having an impact on that issue forever.

A field of interest endowment is targeted to your selected focus area, but is flexible enough to fund those organizations providing the most effective work in your identified field from time to time.

NCCF invests the fund so that a sustainable portion of the fund’s balance (typically 5%) can be granted out each year to support that year’s selected organizations.

How is grantmaking conducted?

There are two options for determining how grantees are chosen:

• Donor advised field of interest endowment: Donor retains the ability to identify and recommend grant recipients from year to year.
• Non-donor advised field of interest endowment: Donor designates another entity to identify and select worthy grant recipients from within the specified field of interest. Many donors chose NCCF or a local NCCF affiliate advisory board to provide this grantmaking advice.

How can you begin a field of interest endowment?

A minimum gift of $25,000 and a simple fund agreement are the first steps. After the initial gift is made, additional gifts may be made in any amount, at any time.