2009 Highlights

2009 marked the first full year of operation for the Community Foundation of Utah. Read about what has happened since we joined the more than 700 community foundations long active across the US when we received our 501(c)3 status in March, thanks to the work of Michelle Allred with the firm of Ballard Sphar.

Social Entrepreneurship

• Sponsored the social entrepreneurship category in the 2009 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, a first in the nation.  15 nonprofits were judged by the same criteria as their for-profit peers, with Matt Minkevitch from the Road Home honored for his work to redefine Salt Lake’s approach to homelessness.
• Created the nation’s first ever entrepreneur – nonprofit speed mentoring event.

Research

• Completed three economic dashboards, sponsored by Wells Fargo, measuring the impact of the recession on the state’s charitable organizations and their clients.
• Published weekly updates latest national research in the areas of philanthropy, nonprofit practice, social entrepreneurship and the work of other community foundations on our web site, www.utahcf.org.
• Asked the youth media agency Spy Hop to produce a series of videos of young Utahns sharing how they would improve our state.

• We are currently analyzing the giving patterns of the state’s top 50 foundations, and developing a feasibility study to create the state’s first Social Innovation Incubator.

Endowments

• We have established a new endowment for Alta Community Enrichment and are assisting their staff and Board in growing this new permanent resource.
• Five individual philanthropists established Donor Advised Funds worth more than $200,000 and awarded more than $50,000 in grants to nonprofits.