Everyone Deserves a Chance at Achieving the American Dream.
Wealth inequality and declining social mobility are the defining challenges of our day.
Community Foundation Opportunity Network (CFON) is a national leadership and action network of community foundations committed to narrowing the youth opportunity gap in their communities. Participating foundations serve communities with a spectrum of geographic, demographic, racial, and socioeconomic diversity.
We're working to increase opportunity and equity for America's marginalized young people.
Community foundations, as part of the “civic backbone of America,” are uniquely positioned to sustain attention on the opportunity gap and drive effective action to narrow it.
Community foundations are driving proven solutions to narrow the youth opportunity gap.
They are connecting donors who are deeply-rooted in local communities to effective solutions tailored to the unique requirements of those communities.
Community Foundation for Greater New Haven
Support Development of an Inclusive Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
The Community Foundation supports an inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem that amplifies the growth of a “new economy,” with particular focus on new businesses in historically under-invested neighborhoods in Greater New …
Southwest Initiative Foundation
Grow Our Own
Too many kids in our region aren’t getting the best possible start to their lives. More than 1 in 6 Southwest Minnesota kids live in poverty and face an …
Oregon Community Foundation
Black Student Success
We will work alongside community leaders throughout the state to build capacity and leadership, and scale proven models that improve outcomes for Black students.
We empower foundations and their partners to learn faster, develop new approaches and produce results.
Our Learning and Sharing Collaborative is the common ground for participating foundations to learn from each other, benchmark with each other, gain access to resources and thought leadership, and understand and develop the preconditions for success at the local level.
Relevant research
Restoring the American Dream
The culminating report from the US Partnership for Mobility from Poverty
Closing the Opportunity Gap
Robert Putnam/Saguaro Seminar Working Group's report
Opportunity, Responsibility and Security
AEI/Brookings Report: A Consensus Plan for Reducing Poverty and Restoring the American Dream
The Opportunity Index
The Opportunity Index provides data that show what opportunity looks like in the United States.
Join Us
Join CFON for invitations to gatherings (face-to-face and virtual) to learn from other communities and for access to national policy networks and thought leadership to elevate the work of your foundation.