The Ford Family Foundation is a private rural philanthropy supporting children, families and communities in rural Oregon and Siskiyou County, California.
The foundation works to help rural children thrive by strengthening family, education and community supports across rural Oregon and Siskiyou County, California.
Kenneth W. Ford and Hallie E. Ford founded the charitable foundation in 1957 during the height of the timber industry in southern Oregon and northern California. Their philanthropy was shaped by Roseburg Lumber, later Roseburg Forest Products, and by a commitment to reinvesting in the rural communities that helped build the company. In 1996, the organization grew in size, scope and geography and became The Ford Family Foundation, with a continued focus on successful citizens and vital rural communities. The foundation is headquartered in Roseburg, Oregon, with a scholarship office in Eugene.
The Ford Family Foundation combines grants, scholarships, community building, research and direct field-based support. Its grantmaking primarily supports 501(c)(3) nonprofits, governmental agencies and tribal nations serving rural Oregon and Siskiyou County, California. The foundation emphasizes community buy-in, local partnerships, clear plans, practical budgets and long-term rural benefit. Open grants are available year-round, while some visual arts and scholarship opportunities follow annual or invitation-based processes.
The foundation has maintained a rural focus since its founding in 1957 and adopted a 10-year strategic plan in 2022 focused on rural children’s family, educational and community supports. It supports a scholarship community of approximately 1,000 students at any given time. Its grantmaking database shows grants approved from 2021 through 2025 across open-door and strategic programs. Its Visual Arts Program has become a significant source of support for established Oregon visual artists and arts institutions.
The foundation works with nonprofits, governmental agencies, tribal nations, rural communities, educators, artists and public-benefit partners. Its Critical Conversations initiative is led by the University of Oregon and has included partners such as Reed College, Portland State University, Pacific Northwest College of Art at Willamette University and Oregon College of Art and Craft. The foundation also works through grant portals, scholarship systems, community-based field coordinators and program-specific partnerships.
The foundation’s current strategy is organized around Strong Starts, Bright Futures and Thriving Communities. Its four program departments are Children, Youth and Families; Community Economic Development; Postsecondary Success; and Rural Community Building. The foundation defines eligible rural communities as those with populations of 35,000 or fewer and not adjacent to, or part of, an urban or metropolitan area of 50,000 or more. Grant applicants are encouraged to demonstrate community support, project readiness, clear budgets, defined outcomes and sustainable planning. The foundation’s scholarship programs have no minimum GPA requirement and use a holistic selection process that emphasizes potential, resilience, community engagement and barriers faced. The Visual Arts Program honors Hallie Ford’s interest in the arts and provides unrestricted awards and institutional support to strengthen Oregon’s visual arts ecology.