February 5, 2007
It took seven pounds of documentation measuring several inches thick for West Central Initiative (WCI) to earn the National Standards Seal from the Council on Foundations for attaining the highest standards for grantmaking integrity and accountability. This prestigious award comes after a national panel’s careful review of WCI’s ability to serve its nine-county region with the best practices for a community foundation.
The Council on Foundations and leaders of the community foundation field created The National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations to establish standards for maximum legal, ethical and effective operational practices. The certification and use of the national standards seal assure donors, professional advisors and government officials that WCI is committed to transparency and financial accountability.
“We had to demonstrate that WCI meets the most rigorous standards in philanthropy, that our grantmaking includes an open process designed to address our changing regional needs, and that WCI has a history of honoring donors’ wishes,” WCI President Nancy Straw said of the approval process. “Ultimately, the hard work compiling the appropriate documentation reaped wonderful results for us and for our donors. We’re so pleased that our standards for day-to-day operations are among the highest in the nation for community foundations.”
“Meeting all of the demanding national standards provides a sense of confidence that WCI is an excellent organization for achieving donors’ philanthropic goals,” said Kim Embretson, WCI vice president for development. “Donors to the more than 60 community and donor-advised funds at WCI can trust that their hard-earned gifts will be used to make our communities better places to live. Professional advisors can work with WCI as a trusted partner to accomplish charitable estate planning for their clients.”
West Central Initiative is a public foundation serving Becker, Clay, Grant, Douglas, Otter Tail, Pope, Stevens, Traverse and Wilkin counties in west central Minnesota. WCI provides programs and resources in the areas of business and employment, workers and their families, and communities and the region. For more information about WCI programs or how you can be a partner/supporter of WCI, call 1-800-735-2239 or look us up on the World Wide Web at www.wcif.org.
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