The Chicago Community Trust
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
The Trust is the Chicago region's community foundation and a public charity supported by public donations since its founding in 1915 to provide assistance and relief to the people of the region.
- Income
- $2.1 billion
- Spending
- $1.3 billion
- Spent on programs
- 98%
- Reserves
- 60.8 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 79%
- Employees
- 150
- Volunteers
- 17
- Highest pay
- $685,048, president & ceo
Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Strong: 90 out of 100. Higher than 32% of charities in its peer group (philanthropy, over $100m).
Reserves
35 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 60.8 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 1% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 41% of income.
Income trend
5 of 15Income fell 13% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1598% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 0 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 38% of charities in its peer group (philanthropy, over $100m).
Independent board
25 of 2517 of 17 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (1)
- $1.2 billion spent. During the year, the Trust made 19,260 total grants to 8,460 organizations totaling $1,225,337,518. The Trust mobilizes grantmaking in three main ways: donor advised funds, programmatic and designated grantmaking, and collaboratives. Through donor advised funds, the Trust inspires philanthropy broadly and facilitates charitable giving by individuals, families, and organizations. During the year, donor advisors recommended grants totaling $1.1B to more than 8,000 organizations in Chicago and beyond. This program enables donors to respond to emerging needs, support a wide range of charitable causes, and sustain long-term philanthropic engagement. The Trust's programmatic and designated grantmaking is its core community impact work, supporting 460 nonprofit organizations across metropolitan Chicago with 851 grants totaling $76.1M to address critical community needs and longer-term initiatives in areas such as housing, economic opportunity and neighborhood investmentt. The Trust's collaborative grantmaking multiplies the impact of individual donors and institutional funders by pooling their funds in support of specific initiatives to stabilize and strengthen neighborhoods and communities. During the year, the Trust made 444 grants totaling $57.4M to over 294 local nonprofits through its collaborative and affinity funds. These efforts strengthened cross-sector partnerships and advanced long-term community outcomes.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending September 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since June 1951.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.