Community foundation scholarships in Illinois
Community foundations pool local donors' funds, and many run dozens of small scholarships with one shared application for students from their area. The IRS lists 28 community foundations in Illinois with at least $1 million in assets.
Largest in Illinois (by assets)
The Chicago Community Trust
All 28 in Illinois
Largest first. Most smaller foundations serve one city or county. Look for the one where you live or went to high school, then check its website for "scholarships". Deadlines are often months before the school year, so check early.
| Foundation | City | Assets | Verify |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Chicago Community Trust | Chicago | $7.1 billion | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley | Aurora | $169 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Dupage Community Foundation | Downers Grove | $162 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Community Foundation of Northern Illinois | Rockford | $156 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Community Foundation of the Quincy Area | Quincy | $86 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Dekalb County Community Foundation | Sycamore | $85 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Peoria Area Community Foundation | Peoria | $82 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Southeastern Illinois Community Foundation | Effingham | $74 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Community Foundation of Macon County | Decatur | $63 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Oak Park-river Forest Community Foundation | Oak Park | $61 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Community Foundation for Mchenry County | Crystal Lake | $55 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Community Foundation of East Central Illinois | Champaign | $48 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Evanston Community Foundation Inc. | Evanston | $45 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Illinois Prairie Community Foundation Inc. | Bloomington | $28 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Morris Community Foundation | Morris | $23 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Morton Community Foundation | Morton | $19 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Boone County Community Foundation | Belvidere | $15 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Barrington Area Community Foundation | Barrington | $12 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Community Foundation of Kankakee River Valley | Kankakee | $11 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Highland Park Community Foundation | Highland Park | $7.6 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Highland Area Community Foundation Inc. | Highland | $7.3 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Edwardsville Community Foundation | Edwardsville | $6.0 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Rochelle Area Community Foundation | Rochelle | $5.0 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Southern Illinois Community Foundation | Marion | $4.0 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Starved Rock Country Community Foundation | Ottawa | $3.9 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Greater Edgar County Community Foundation Inc. | Paris | $2.8 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| St Clement Community Foundation | Red Bud | $1.3 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
| Elmwood Community Foundation | Elmwood | $1.2 million | IRS filings (ProPublica) ↗ |
More for Illinois: Illinois scholarships on this site · Illinois state grants · Illinois apprenticeships
Source & coverage. Foundation list: IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File ↗ (file dated Oct 13, 2026). We include active 501(c)(3) public charities the IRS codes as community foundations (NTEE T31) with at least $1 million in assets, and drop names that are clearly faith-based funds, schools, colleges, hospitals or health funds, service clubs or national donor-advised-fund sponsors. That filter can miss a foundation or include one that works a little differently, and local affiliates that file under a larger foundation don’t appear separately, so a small count doesn’t mean your area has no community foundation. Assets are the IRS figure from each group’s latest filing. Scholarship pages were checked Oct 17, 2026 for the largest foundation in each state only. Not affiliated with the IRS or any foundation listed. For the full national directory, see the Council on Foundations locator ↗.