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Code of Ethics and Statement of Values for the
COMMUNITY FOUNDATION

I. Personal and Professional Integrity
All staff, Board members and volunteers of the COMMUNITY FOUNDATION of the Jewish Federation of Orange County ("the Foundation") act with honesty, integrity and openness in all their dealings as representatives of the Foundation. We promote a working environment that values respect, fairness and integrity.

II. Mission
The Foundation has a clearly stated mission and purpose, approved by the Board of Directors, in pursuit of the public good. All of our programs support that mission and all who work for or on behalf of the organization understand and are loyal to that mission and purpose. The mission is responsive to the constituency served by the Foundation and of value to the society at large.

III. Governance
The Foundation has an active Board of Directors that is responsible for setting the mission and strategic direction of the organization and oversight of the finances, operations, and policies of the organization. The Board of Directors to the best of its ability:

    • Ensures that its Board members have the requisite skills and experience to carry out their duties and that all members understand and fulfill their governance duties acting for the benefit of the organization and its public purpose;

    • Ensures that any conflicts of interest or the appearance thereof are avoided or appropriately managed through disclosure, recusal or other means; and

    • Ensures that the Staff provides the Board of Directors with timely and comprehensive information so that the Board of Directors can effectively carry out its duties;

    • Ensures that the Foundation conducts all transactions and dealings with integrity and honesty;

    • Ensures that the Foundation promotes working relationships with Board members, staff, volunteers, and program beneficiaries that are based on mutual respect, fairness and openness;

    • Ensures that the Foundation is fair and inclusive in its hiring and promotion policies and practices for all Board, staff and volunteer positions;

    • Ensures that policies of the Foundation are in writing, clearly articulated and officially adopted;

    • Ensures that the resources of the Foundation are responsibly and prudently managed; and,

    • Ensures that the Foundation has the capacity to carry out its programs effectively.

IV. Legal Compliance
The Foundation is knowledgeable of and complies with all laws, regulations and applicable international conventions.

V. Responsible Stewardship
The Foundation manages its funds responsibly and prudently.

    • It spends an adequate amount on administrative expenses to ensure effective accounting systems, internal controls, competent staff, and other expenditures critical to professional management;

    • The organization compensates staff, and any others who may receive compensation, reasonably and appropriately;

    • The Foundation has reasonable fundraising costs, recognizing the variety of factors that affect fundraising costs;

    • The Foundation prudently draws from endowment funds consistent with donor intent and to support the public purpose of the organization;

    • The Foundation ensures that all spending practices and policies are fair, reasonable and appropriate to fulfill the mission of the organization; and,

    • All financial reports are factually accurate and complete in all material respects.

VI. Openness and Disclosure
The Foundation provides comprehensive and timely information to all interested parties and is responsive in a timely manner to reasonable requests for information. All information about the organization will fully and honestly reflect the policies and practices of the organization. Basic informational data about the organization, such as the Form 990 and audited financial statements is made available to public scrutiny. All solicitation materials accurately represent the Foundation's policies and practices and will reflect the dignity of program beneficiaries. All financial, organizational, and program reports will be complete and accurate in all material respects.

VII. Program Evaluation
The Foundation regularly reviews program effectiveness and has mechanisms to incorporate lessons learned into future programs. The Foundation is committed to improving program and organizational effectiveness and develops mechanisms to promote learning from its activities and the field. The organization is responsive to changes in its field of activity and is responsive to the needs of its constituency.

VIII. Fundraising
The Foundation is truthful in its materials. We respect the privacy concerns of individual donors and expend funds consistent with donor intent. The Foundation discloses important and relevant information to potential donors.

In raising funds from the public, the Foundation will respect the rights of donors, as follows:

    • To be informed of the mission of the organization, the way the resources will be used and their capacity to use donations effectively for their intended purposes;

    • To be informed of the identity of those serving on the organization's governing Board and to expect the Board to exercise prudent judgment in its stewardship responsibilities;

    • To have access to the organization's most recent financial reports;

    • To be assured their gifts will be used for the purposes for which they were given;

    • To receive appropriate acknowledgement and recognition;

    • To be assured that information about their donations is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by the law;

    • To expect that all relationships with individuals representing organizations of interest to the donor will be professional in nature;

    • To have the opportunity for their names to be deleted from mailing lists that an organization may intend to share; and,

    • To feel free to ask questions when making a donation and to receive prompt, truthful and forthright answers.

IX. Grant Maker Guidelines
As a grant maker, the Foundation has particular responsibilities in carrying out its mission. including the following:

    • We will have constructive relations with grant seekers based on mutual respect and shared goals;

    • We will communicate clearly and on a timely basis with potential grantees;

    • We will treat grant seekers and grantees fairly and with respect;

    • We will respect the expertise of grant seekers in their fields of knowledge;

    • We will seek to understand and respect the organizational capacity and needs of grant seeking organizations; and,

    • We will respect the integrity of the mission of grant seeking organizations.