COLUMBUS – The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation announced today that it will invest up to $2.5 million in an endowed fund to foster an “informed, engaged” Columbus area over the next seven years through the Community Foundation of the Chattahoochee Valley.

The effort is part of Knight Foundation’s $70 million Community Foundation Initiative, an effort to deepen Knight Foundation’s commitment to ensuring that communities are informed about and engaged in the issues and opportunities that face them.

“Information is an essential community need and community foundations were established to meet core needs,” said Alberto Ibargüen, Knight Foundation’s president and CEO. “They also only exist and thrive because of community engagement and contributions. That makes them ideal partners to help us understand and advance local community engagement, focused on ensuring that these communities have the information they need to manage their affairs in our democracy.”

The new approach will modify how Knight Foundation works in Columbus and other Knight communities. Grant seekers in Columbus and Phenix City , Ala. will apply for funding through the Community Foundation of the Chattahoochee Valley . A new director in Knight’s Miami headquarters will work with an advisory committee in Columbus to guide the community foundation on how to use the funds.

“At the community foundation, we believe that citizens have a responsibility, as members of a democracy, to become as informed and engaged in their communities as possible,” said Betsy Covington, executive director of the Community Foundation of the Chattahoochee Valley . “Today’s changing media environment makes information-gathering easy in some ways but infinitely complex. We look forward to helping this new grant funding foster opportunities to flatten hierarchies and empower ordinary people to mutually address community issues.”

Nonprofits seeking Knight funding should contact Covington at the Community Foundation of the Chattahoochee Valley and ask about Knight Foundation’s donor-advised fund, or visit the community foundation’s website at www.cfcv.com.

“Our goal is to better coordinate and focus our initiatives in the communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers, and use our resources in the most effective way possible,” said Trabian Shorters , Knight Foundation’s vice president for communities.

Community foundations make contributions to local groups from funds established by individuals, families, businesses and others to address needs in specific geographic areas. These organizations offer a national funder like Knight the benefit of their grassroots grasp of issues. The grants will help community foundations enlarge their donor-advised funds supporting the work of local nonprofits.

The initial Knight fund was established at the Community Foundation in 1993. From 2000 to 2007, Knight contributed a total of $69 million to create donor-advised funds at 25 community foundations. At $70 million, this new initiative doubles Knight’s current investment in community foundations.

About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation advances journalism in the digital age and invests in the vitality of communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. Knight Foundation focuses on projects that promote informed, engaged communities and lead to transformational change. For more, visit www.knightfoundation.org.

About Community Foundation of the Chattahoochee Valley

The Community Foundation of the Chattahoochee Valley was formed in 1998 by a group of citizens interested in encouraging philanthropy and strengthening communities. Since then, the Community Foundation has grown to more than $62 million in assets and has awarded over $34 million in grants through its donor advised, unrestricted, designated, field-of-interest, scholarship, and organization endowment funds. As a local center for philanthropy, the Community Foundation of the Chattahoochee Valley works with individuals, families, corporations, private foundations and not-for-profit organizations to carry out their charitable objectives and address emerging community issues. For more, visit www.cfcv.com.

Contacts:

• Betsy Covington, Executive Director, Community Foundation of the Chattahoochee Valley , 706-320-0027; [email protected]
• Marc Fest, Vice President of Communications, Knight Foundation, 305-908-2677; [email protected]