- Giving
- Types of Funds
- Scholarship Funds
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Scholarship Funds
Support Montana students in their educational endeavors.
Make an Impact on Montana Students
Scholarship funds can make a significant and positive impact on students' lives and Montana's future. With more than 50 scholarship funds distributing nearly $500,000 each year, the Montana Community Foundation is one of the largest providers of scholarships in the state.
An individual, family, business, or organization can establish a scholarship. You create the selection guidelines and we identify eligible students, distribute the scholarships, handle all paperwork and documentation, and ensure students continue to meet the criteria once enrolled.
Scholarship funds support students obtaining their education and degrees at varying levels in the educational system. They are considered nondiscriminatory even if they benefit a limited group of people, such as women, minorities, or residents of a particular community. If you’re interested in a comprehensive approach to helping scholars succeed, we can also help you identify and partner with nonprofit organizations that sponsor college preparation activities such as tutoring, test preparation, mentoring, and more.
Interested in learning more about establishing your own scholarship fund?
Frequently Asked Questions
The minimum contribution to establish an endowed fund at MCF is $25,000, or $100,000 for scholarship funds. This may be donated in a single lump sum or cumulatively over five years. For charitable organizations that establish both an Agency and a Designated fund, the balance of the two funds can be combined to meet the required minimum contribution.
An endowment is a fund held in perpetuity for charitable benefit. As the fund grows, returns are used to support the designated beneficiary organization, field of interest, etc. An endowment can be funded by a variety of assets such as cash, property or securities. Learn more.
All endowed funds are pooled and invested in MCF’s managed pooled portfolio. This pool of funds is managed by independent investment managers selected by and under supervision of the MCF Investment Committee. See more about our investments.
Community Impact Fees are the fees associated with managing funds. All fees are established and reviewed by the MCF Board and are kept as low as possible to maximize a fund’s charitable giving power. Please refer to the Investments and Financials Page to see our Fee Schedule.
The fund representative is the official point of contact for MCF in all matters relating to the fund. The representative is appointed at the time a fund is established, and he/she may appoint a new or successor representative at any time by notifying MCF in writing.
Payments to beneficiaries of endowed funds are made annually in March. Fund representatives may choose to reinvest all earnings, after payment of fees, in order to build principal. To change a fund’s status to re-invest, the fund representative must notify MCF by December 31 prior to the distribution cycle. No distributions are made until the fund reaches the required minimum contribution amount.
MCF's online portal provides you with 24/7 access to your fund account at MCF. Fund statements are available and show a summary of endowment fund activity for the previous year, including detailed information on contributions, distributions, fees and total returns.
Helping Students Like Megan
As Megan states, “The scholarship took away the financial stress of going to college so I could focus on my education and allowed me to graduate without student loans!”