The community foundation for mississippi

For over 25 years, The Community Foundation for Mississippi (CFM) have helped inspire community change for the better in Mississippi.

In 1994, Jackson was the last major southern city without a community foundation. Serving as a place for charitable fund investment, community foundations frequently are the “permanent endowment” for a community, connecting philanthropic resources and creating a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. That year, a visionary group of Leadership Jackson alumni began the work of creating such a resource for the capital city, and the Community Foundation of Greater Jackson was founded—starting with four charitable funds totaling just $250,000.

Fast-forward two decades — CFM’s charitable assets have grown to more than $62 million, and they have awarded more than $57 million in grants and scholarships that have directly benefited communities in the Greater Jackson area and across the state.

Since the establishment of those first four funds, the needs of the Greater Jackson region and the state of Mississippi have grown significantly. At the same time, an aging population is transferring its wealth from one generation to the next at a rapid pace.

CFM is an experienced leader and trusted partner in philanthropy, and can help counties without a community foundation cultivate donors with a desire to help their nonprofits, for good and forever.

In 2017, they announced the decision to change our name to the Community Foundation for Mississippi, and expand their work to support more communities directly – 22 counties in all.

Website: https://formississippi.org/

CFM’s work with The Harwood Institute

  • Created A New Civic Covenant: Jackson Ready to Step Forward (2019)

  • Launched 3-year community initiative

  • Held a Healing & Hope Tour Stop

  • Working on a new Community Voice report that focuses on Jackson’s rebuilding and recovery after multiple water crises, COVID-19, and other setbacks

Jane Alexander

President & CEO

Jane Clover Alexander, CFRE, has an immense love for her community, a strong belief in the power of giving and an enduring interest in what makes people tick.

She was tapped as President and CEO of the Community Foundation in August 2012. Since she began her tenure, the Foundation has grown to $60 million in assets, with more than 250 funds—more than double its size in 2012. It recently completed an expanded vision, mission and footprint, which led to its new naming, Community Foundation for Mississippi, in November 2017.

New public-private partnerships shepherded by the Community Foundation have seen the launch and ongoing success of the Mississippi Book Festival, remodeling and improving the Farish Street soup kitchen for Central United Methodist Church, blight remediation through Revitalize Mississippi and Action for Jackson, the renovation of Thalia Mara Hall auditorium and Refill Café, the new community café addressing workforce development. Most recently, the Foundation has housed the initiative between the Mississippi Governor’s Office, Mayor of the City of Jackson and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to study and identify challenges facing the Jackson Public School system, and suggest community-based solutions to address those challenges.

She currently serves on the boards of the Southeastern Council of Foundations and the Mississippi Alliance of Nonprofits and Philanthropy and is a past board member of the Rotary Club of Jackson and past president of the Mississippi chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. She is a member of the CEO Forum of SECF, was a state captain for Foundations on the Hill, and serves on SECF’s Strategic Planning, Government Relations and Program Committees. She was elected to membership in International Women’s Forum in 2017.

A former magazine editor, Jane was editor of Mississippi Magazine and founded South Magazine, about the people, places and popular culture of the region. She taught journalism at Mississippi College and worked for Communication Arts Company creative agency. Her nonprofit professional experience includes work with Easter Seals, Millsaps College and the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra. She has served on the boards of the Oaks House Museum, Mississippi Symphony Orchestra and New Stage Theatre, among others. A native of Jackson, Jane attended St. Andrew's Episcopal School, Jackson Prep and Millsaps College. She earned a master’s degree in journalism with an emphasis in nonprofit public relations from the University of Mississippi. She also studied at the Else School of Management, St. John’s College, Oxford and the University of London.

Jane’s husband, Brent, is a public policy consultant and they are the parents of twin 12-year-old girls: Elizabeth Chandler and Emily Clare. They are communicants of St. James Episcopal Church in Jackson.

The daughter of longtime community leaders and activists, Jane believes her work at the Community Foundation pays tribute to the legacy of service her parents instilled in her from the tender age of 3.