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Right Size Applications; Simplify Reporting
Affirmation: Paperwork hinders us all.
Duplicative or complex proposal and reporting requirements divert time and resources for both nonprofits and philanthropy, needlessly burdens nonprofit partners and siphons scarce resources away from where they are most needed. Funders can lessen the burden on grantee partners by streamlining the application and reporting processes, especially for repeat grantee partners; decreasing the required data to only the most necessary for decision-making; taking on some of the burden of data collection by gathering data from central repositories such as Candid (formerly GuideStar) and the IRS; and retain and use data already collected from repeat grantees. Funders should require updated information such as annual budget, staffing, board member changes, etc., in their grant applications only when the nonprofit is the only source for this information. Collaborate with other local funders and agree to common GOS application questions and budget templates; streamline tools through technology and offer innovative ways for organizations to apply for and report out on grants; limit written requirements to information that is relevant to the request, and which moves the needle on critical social issues.
Activities
• Reduce rigidity and increase the flexibility of what nonprofits must submit for their applications in creative, egalitarian, and less burdensome ways.
• All funders right-size their application and report requirements relative to the grant amount.
• Shift from reports to conversations or other lower time-intensive means.
• Develop agreed-upon common questions for use across the philanthropy sector for general operating support grant applications.
• Explore the efficacy of using common applications for general operating support grants.
• Change site visits for compliance to goals of learning.
• Consider developing a central data repository for New Jersey nonprofits and funders, where applicants can submit and update basic information once a year, and funders can access the necessary information.
Outcomes
• 75% of funders begin to reduce the size of applications and reports relative to the size of the grant.
• 75% of funders shift from reports to conversations or other lower time-intensive means, like site visits geared to learning and relationship building.
• 50% of funders making general operating support grants accept creative, egalitarian, less burdensome applications including other funders proposals.
• Nonprofits have increased capacity to dedicate time to other activities and efforts.
How to Begin Doing Good Better on Reducing Burden
Learning opportunities
• For funders who do not right-size their applications, what are the barriers to reducing paperwork?
• Who is making the decisions about the application and reporting requirements, and how can they be reached to encourage change? How can we involve more board members of funders in this effort?
• For funders who require reports, determine what is “nice to have” vs. what is needed and used and consider eliminating the rest; what are expeditious ways to collect data including accepting other funders’ reports?
• Which funders who make multi-year grants require a full application for the first year and updates for subsequent years?
Pre-Work
• For funders who already report tailoring their applications, consider how to further simplify processes for grantees; share these practices with other colleagues in philanthropy.
• Learn how information is collected without burdening the applicant.
• Review and implement recommendations already provided by nonprofit networks and philanthropy-serving organizations for concrete examples such as centralized document repositories; allowing nonprofit partners to re-use other proposals and reports; holding check-in meetings in lieu of written reports; and other helpful practices.
• Seek promising practices of funders who use site visits as opportunities to build trust and understand the programs and organizations they support instead of as compliance reviews.
Notes:
See, for example, SMU DataArts (formerly the Cultural Data Project), https://culturaldata.org, a nationwide research and data repository for the arts and cultural community. DataArts serves as a collector and clearinghouse for a wide array of data, which funders can access instead of requiring nonprofits to provide it separately.
CNJG affinity and interest groups provide a valued forum through which New Jersey grantmakers can connect, exchange information, and learn from experts in a wide range of fields and sectors. Members with a focus on a particular geography or issue meet on a regular basis and are self-organized. For additional information or to discuss forming a new group, contact Chanika Svetvilas.
Camden Funders Affinity Group
Camden Funders Affinity Group provides a valued forum for grantmakers working in Camden to connect and exchange information and to hear from stakeholders working in benefit of Camden.
Culture Funders Affinity Group
The Culture Funders Affinity Group includes private and public grantmakers working in the arts and humanities across New Jersey. It aims to maximize the leadership potential and grantmaking abilities of those interested in developing a strong and thriving arts community in New Jersey.
Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy Affinity Group
The Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy Affinity Group’s mission is to nurture, develop and support professionals in the philanthropic sector across all departments/roles within foundations. Programming for the Emerging Leaders group is geared towards early and mid-career professionals and will serve as: a professional learning community for emerging professionals working in diverse positions; an opportunity for professional development and individual capacity-building that will lead to institutional change within the member organizations; and as a critical partner in the creation of a pipeline into senior/executive leadership in NJ philanthropy.
Environmental Grantmakers Affinity Group
The Environmental Grantmakers Affinity Group formed in 2007 to provide a network and sounding board for environmental grantmakers who share an interest in: (1) insuring a healthy environment for all residents of the Garden State; (2) preserving, restoring and regenerating natural resources, including air, water, land, energy resources, as well as native flora and fauna; and (3) encouraging solution-based responses to resource challenges, wiser use of resources, and sustainable practices at individual, public agency small business and corporate levels.
Finance & Investment Affinity Group
The Finance & Investment Affinity Group brings together grantmakers of all types and sizes to discuss financial market trends and to exchange strategies to help ensure the greatest endowment growth. At each meeting, the latest market performance reports and commentaries are also discussed.
Funders for NJ Education Affinity Group
The Funders for NJ Education Affinity Group connects those making grants in support of education and provides interested members with insights into current initiatives, research findings, and best practices. Past topics of discussion have included analyses of school funding, innovative educational programming, measuring teacher effectiveness and youth development programs and have included roundtable discussions of emerging trends and key issues.
Funders for Strong and Thriving Communities Affinity Group
The Funders for Strong and Thriving Communities Affinity Group is an intrastate, inter-disciplinary network of public and private investors interested in enhancing the quality-of-life of the residents that live within New Jersey communities, through place-based investment or philanthropy. The group aims to draw upon and leverage the knowledge of public and private sector experts in the field of community development; including affordable housing, economic development, job creation, neighborhood building, and services to children and families.
Health Funders Affinity Group
The Health Funders Affinity Group is a collaborative network of grantmakers dedicated to advancing a holistic and intersectional view of health across New Jersey. This group provides a platform to exchange grantmaking strategies, funding priorities, best practices, and valuable insights while fostering collaboration to address health-related challenges and opportunities across diverse populations and life stages.
New Jersey Corporate Philanthropy Network Affinity Group
The New Jersey Corporate Philanthropy Network Affinity Group convenes corporate funders whose giving footprint includes New Jersey. Meetings cover such topics as current and emerging trends in strategic philanthropy, the business case for Corporate Social Responsibility, marketing/branding, sponsorships, employee matching gifts, employee engagement/volunteerism, and more. Best practices are shared and opportunities for collaboration are offered. A traditional Round Robin, where current burning issues/questions are discussed closes out the meetings. We hope you will join us at an upcoming event.
Newark Funders Affinity Group
The Newark Funders Affinity Group began in 2010 as a result of the convening work of CNJG’s Newark Philanthropic Liaison. As of May 20th, 2025, the Newark Education Funder Affinity Group merged with the Newark Funders Affinity Group to ensure alignment and coordination among funders dedicated to the city. The group meets quarterly hearing from elected officials, senior government and educational leaders, members of the nonprofit community, and local civic stewards to better understand Newark's emerging needs and opportunities, all with the goal of leveraging grantmaking for greater impact.
Paterson Funders Affinity Group
The Paterson Funders Affinity Group helps facilitate awareness of work by nonprofits and funders in Paterson, foster collaboration, and improve the lives of Paterson residents. Past meetings have focused on information regarding funder projects in the city, including some new grants made and lessons learned on ongoing projects in the areas of education, health and nutrition, arts and culture, and civics.
Trenton Area & Mercer County Funders Affinity Group
The Trenton Area & Mercer County Funders Affinity Group’s goal is to explore the most pressing needs and issues in the Trenton and Mercer County region and to uncover ways to leverage resources and develop solutions to this community’s greatest concerns. Past meetings have included roundtable discussions on the unique needs of the Trenton area and guest speakers that highlighted the dynamic interrelationship between the City of Trenton and the State of New Jersey.
CNJG’s 2024 Affinity Group co-chairs (name/affinity group):
Front row: Sharnita Johnson/Culture Funders; Leslie Walker/Camden Funders; Bill Leavens/Environmental Grantmakers; Julia Stoumbos/Paterson Funders; Chanika Svetvilas/CNJG’s Manager of Programs and Learning
Back rows: Theresa Jacks/CNJG’s President and CEO; Kevin Callaghan/CNJG’s Newark Philanthropic Liaison; Shakirat Odunsi/CNJG’s Manager of Communications; Julie Holland/Paterson Funders; Katherine Nunnally/Trenton Area and Mercer County Funders; Jasmyne Beckford/Newark Funders; Monica Hall/Emerging Leaders; Erik Estrada/Camden Funders; Jessica Nugent/Health & Aging Funders; Sharif Braxton/Health & Aging Funders; Liz Crowley/Environmental Grantmakers
Not pictured: Tammy Herman/Culture Funders; Alana Vega/Emerging Leaders; Rich Riberio/Finance & Investment; Paul Stierhoff/Finance & Investment; Jessica McKenzie/Newark Education Funders; Pat Hartpence/NJ Corporate Philanthropy Network; Etta Denk/NJ Corporate Philanthropy Network; Kortney Swanson Davis/ Education Funders; Melissa Litwin/Education Funders
Current Vacancies (as of 4/2024): Trenton & Mercer County Funders (1); Strong & Thriving Communities Funders (2); Newark Funders (2)
Capacity building enables nonprofit leaders and organizations to develop the skills and resources they need to improve their work. Since each situation is unique and circumstances are always changing, effective capacity-building support is tailored to best suit the needs of grantees. This publication offers practical guidance and considerations to help grantmakers design an impactful approach.
CNJG celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2017 marked by extraordinary progress and service to members over this time. As the nexus for the philanthropic community in New Jersey, the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers’ body of work grows more robust every year. This is clearly evident by the exponential growth in programs and services since CNJG was founded in 1987. However, this proliferation in programs and services does not reflect the full realm of CNJG's transformation over twenty years. CNJG has evolved to become a leader in the state, spearheading important and significant initiatives throughout our history.
These programs, services and leadership initiatives elevate, not only our members’ work and practice, but also grantmakers throughout New Jersey, and even beyond. CNJG's success stems from its ability to broker partnerships and alliances to solve problems, leverage shared resources, and forge sustainable solutions to bring about long-term change. During its 20 years, CNJG has grown to become a valuable, highly relevant leadership organization serving a diverse range of funders. View our CNJG Through the Years pictorial. CNJG thanks our members and partners for your ongoing support and leadership that has propelled us through the last 20 years. We look forward to the next twenty!
Newark Philanthropic Liaison
Philanthropy has played a vital role in Newark for decades. In 2007, in collaboration with the Office of the Mayor, CNJG hired the city’s first liaison – modeled after a similar position in the State of Michigan – to harness interest, foster greater effectiveness and attract resources toward policy and programmatic areas that affect Newark’s residents. In the years since, the Council’s Newark Philanthropic Liaison has become a model for the country.
Hurricane Sandy Response
Superstorm Sandy officially came ashore in New Jersey on October 29, 2012 at 8:00 p.m. and its aftermath continues to be felt in communities throughout our state. Not 24 hours after the storm made landfall, CNJG began planning a series of actions to help inform funders what to be prepared for, share information and discuss strategies. CNJG's support of the philanthropic community as it navigates the shifting landscape of disaster recovery, continues.
Facing Our Future
Facing Our Future was a landmark initiative looking at the systemic, long term fiscal challenges facing all levels of government in New Jersey. It grew out of a 2010 briefing CNJG held for members that outlined how a Governor’s budget is annually crafted. CNJG leadership worked with members to convene a group of enthusiastic former government leaders. Their collective experience crossed party lines, and many of them had served multiple New Jersey governors. This Leadership Group included 4 former Attorney Generals, 3, former Commissioners, 2 former State Treasurers, a former Director of the State Senate and a former Chief Justice of the NJ Supreme Court, in addition to leading New Jersey researchers.
Establishing South Jersey’s Community Foundation
The Community Foundation of South Jersey formally launched in 2009 after two years of extensive planning through the efforts of CNJG and a number Council members. CFSJ is dedicated to the southernmost counties of New Jersey - Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Ocean, and Salem. These counties are exceptionally diverse, stretching from rural farm lands to pockets of densely populated and poor urban areas, juxtaposed against wealthy suburban communities. However, they share many of the same social problems – a challenging economy, unengaged youth, access to healthcare, as well as issues related to hunger, unemployment and housing. Realizing the need, Council members through the work of CNJG formed The Community Foundation of South Jersey. CNJG is extremely proud to have played a role in building the foundation to serve South Jersey for generations to come.
Spring Colloquium
Held for the first time in 2008, CNJG's Spring Colloquium focuses on critical trends and issues affecting foundations and the people and communities they serve. Past discussions have featured Governor Tom Kean with US Editor for the Economist Matthew Bishop, writer David Borestein and philosopher Anthony Appiah, and Idealist.org founder Ami Dar with Cindy Rizzo of the Arcus Foundation.
Spring Conference
CNJG's Conference for Grantmakers brings together staff and trustees of all types and sizes of foundations for a day of networking and focused sessions dealing with key aspects of grantmaking, leadership, and management and operations.
The Office of the Newark Philanthropic Liaison (NPL) —an innovative collaboration between the city of Newark and the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers (CNJG) —is tasked with harnessing interest, fostering greater effectiveness, and attracting resources toward policy and programmatic areas that affect and improve the lives of Newark’s residents. Supported by a dedicated cohort of funders through CNJG, the office is non-partisan and based in the Mayor’s Office in Newark City Hall. The Liaison represents one of the nation's first formal partnerships between a city and the philanthropic community, and has become a national model for public-private alliances. At its core, the role has three main functions:
- Connect – Align citywide initiatives and bring together cross-sector partners for collective action.
- Convene – Foster strong partnerships with regional and national philanthropic leaders and support Newark and New Jersey funder collaboration through funder affinity groups.
- Leverage – Identify and maximize public and private resources for City priorities.
As Newark is at a pivotal time in its growth and development, the Office of Newark Philanthropic Liaison is focused on a number of big issues including equitable economic development in our neighborhoods, educational equity, employment, serving the needs of our immigrant and other vulnerable communities, housing for the homeless, and expanding broadband and health services. Now more than ever, we need collaboration and partnerships. These issues are too big for any one person or entity to solve alone.
The Newark Philanthropic Liaison project is supported by Bank of America, the Burke Foundation, the Community Foundation of New Jersey, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Maher Charitable Foundation, the MCJ Amelior Foundation, The Prudential Foundation, Schumann Fund for New Jersey, Turrell Fund, and the Victoria Foundation. While the Nicholson Foundation sunset in late 2021, we acknowledge and thank the foundation for its long-term support of the initiative.
We also acknowledge the City of Newark for its commitment to collaborating with the position and elevating the voice of philanthropy. A special thank you to the Community Foundation of New Jersey, which facilitates and manages grant funds for many of our partnerships.
Home ownership remains a central pillar to the American dream. For most Americans, home equity encompasses the lion’s share of their wealth. Yet, housing is becoming increasingly inaccessible and out of reach. Median sales prices across the country have outpaced income growth. Demand for housing far outweighs supply. Costs are out of range for many. Contemporary mortgage markets still exclude more than half of Black American households from homeownership. The importance of homeownership in building wealth coupled with the oppressive legacy of racial exclusion point to the need for systemic policy change.
Together, we will:
- Hear market-specific strategies to lower entry barriers and create more equity and affordability through housing policy
- Discuss the role of philanthropy to identify, support, and educate for housing affordability and equity
Speakers:
Christie Stewart, Chief Initiative Officer, Center for Housing Opportunity (CT)
Marcel Negret, Senior Planner, Regional Plan Association
Staci Berger, President and CEO of Housing & Community Development Network of New Jersey
Julian St. Patrick Clayton, Deputy Director of Policy and Research, Center for NYC Neighborhoods
Moderator:
Julian Pierce, Director, Economic Opportunity, Fairfield County’s Community Foundation
Cost: Free for CNJG Members and Non Member Grantmakers
Articles of Interest
Webinar recording
Renter Empowerment and Neighborhood Tools (RENT) for Health Equity
New York Neighbors Coalition
NYC Community Land Initiative and CLT Map
Reimagining Financial Resources for Affordable Housing Development in Fairfield County, CT in 2020
American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Fiscal Recovery Funds
Who Owns Newark? Rutgers-Newark Study Finds Troubling Rise in Corporate Buying of City Homes | Rutgers University-Newark
Connecticut Housing Accessibility and Affordability (urban.org)
Fairfield County Housing Accessibility and Affordability (urban.org)
The Fourth Regional Plan - The Fourth Regional Plan (fourthplan.org)
Housing Segregation is a Choice
Be My Neighbor: Untapped Housing Solutions: ADUs and Conversions
Be My Neighbor in Fairfield County: Untapped Housing Solutions: ADUs and Conversions
CNJG’s Newark Philanthropic Liaison, Kevin Callaghan, organized a series of webinars for our Newark Funders Affinity Group and other funders to know the specific challenges of New Jersey’s largest city responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Guest speakers included, Mayor Ras Baraka, Newark Public Schools Superintendent Roger Leon, consulting firm McKinsey & Co., and Catherine Wilson, CEO of United Way of Greater Newark.
Facing Our Future was a landmark initiative looking at the systemic, long term fiscal challenges facing all levels of government in New Jersey. It grew out of a 2010 briefing CNJG held for members that outlined how a Governor’s budget is annually crafted. CNJG leadership worked with members to convene a group of enthusiastic former government leaders. Their collective experience crossed party lines, and many of them had served multiple New Jersey governors. This Leadership Group included 4 former Attorney Generals, 3, former Commissioners, 2 former State Treasurers, a former Director of the State Senate and a former Chief Justice of the NJ Supreme Court, in addition to leading New Jersey researchers.
Facing Our Future became an independent, bipartisan effort under the auspices of CNJG. It has produced 3 different reports that centered on the same theme.
During 2023, CNJG gathered benefits information from our members to generate our 2023 New Jersey Philanthropy Benefits & Salary Summary Report. Members tell us that this report is one of the most important and effective benchmarking tools for our field. A statistically significant number of members completed our Benefits Report. We are grateful to those that completed the survey, which is a major investment of time, to help us gather this useful data.
The report consists of two sections:
CNJG Benefits Survey
CNJG and our members want specific data about the benefits offered to their employees, board, and more. Therefore, CNJG created our triennial Benefits Survey that gathered this comprehensive data specific to New Jersey’s grantmaking community.
For the second time in this survey’s history, we asked for board and staff demographic data. As more attention is focused on racial equity in our work, it is helpful to benchmark this data in graphical form. We hope it sparks conversation at your organization.
Council on Foundations (CoF) Salary Survey
The salary survey was administered by our partners, the Council on Foundations. This annual nationwide effort by CoF (with the assistance of other Philanthropy-Serving Organizations across the country) benchmarks the salaries of employees at foundations, corporate giving programs, and other philanthropic organizations. CNJG encourages any and all members to complete this survey each year.
Salary information from CoF presents national, mid-Atlantic, and New Jersey data for over 40 staff positions. Salary ranges are only given for positions with five or more reporting organizations. To report on more New Jersey salary data, we hope more members will complete this annual survey.
CNJG reminds our members and other foundations across New Jersey to complete both surveys when they are available – CoF’s is EVERY YEAR, and CNJG’s is every three years. The more data we and CoF can gather, the better and more accurate the results will be for the philanthropic community both in the state and nationally.
Download the 2023 New Jersey Philanthropy Benefits & Salary Survey Summary Report here. You must be a member of CNJG and logged in to access the report.
CNJG's past Summary Reports may be found on our website:
2020 New Jersey Philanthropy Benefits & Salary Survey Summary Report, released in January 2021
2017 New Jersey Foundation Benefits & Salary Summary Report, released in September 2017
2014 New Jersey Foundation Benefits & Salary Summary Report, released in February 2015
2011 Mid-Atlantic Foundation Benefits & Salary Summary Report, released in June 2012
This guide was designed to help the state’s philanthropic community understand their ethical, legal, and fiduciary requirements and obligations.
We are pleased to share Strengthening Philanthropy in Newark - Report to the Field 2015 from the Office of the Newark Philanthropic Liaison. First established in 2007, the Liaison office represents one of the nation’s first formal partnerships between a city and the philanthropic community. The initiative began as a partnership between the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers in collaboration with then Mayor Cory A. Booker. We are proud this unique partnership continues with Mayor Ras Baraka and his new administration.
This report provides a brief summary of some of the substantial activities and impact the Office of the Newark Philanthropic Liaison facilitated throughout 2015. The strategy of collective impact is thriving throughout Newark thanks in large part to the work of the Liaison, and the funding community’s support of and robust engagement with the Office of the Mayor and anchor institutions across the city continue to reap positive outcomes. The Office of the Newark Philanthropic Liaison is supported by: Bank of America, The Foundation for Newark’s Future, Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, The MCJ Amelior Foundation, The Nicholson Foundation, Panasonic Corporation of North America, The Prudential Foundation, Schumann Foundation for New Jersey, Turrell Fund, Victoria Foundation, and PSEG Foundation providing in-kind support and meeting space.
Native Voices Rising is a joint research and re-granting project of Native Americans in Philanthropy and Common Counsel Foundation. This report focuses on the practices and challenges of community organizing and advocacy, focusing on the need for increased investment in and sustained support for American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian communities.
This weekly conference call series welcomed New Jersey-based grantmakers along with national funders and provided an opportunity for grantmakers to hear from a wide range of experts in the field of disaster philanthropy. This series started on September 9, 2013 and concluded on November 4, 2013. The written summaries of each recording are listed below.