Sewall Foundation’s Definition of Fiduciary Responsibility

Foundation leaders who want to Meet The Moment with trust-based funding may need to redefine and align around a shared understanding across board and staff of “fiduciary responsibility.”

When the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation went through this process in 2024, it helped to activate and inspire the board and staff, while also informing important decisions around increasing their grantmaking budget. The definition clarified governance roles and relationships between board and staff while posing questions for the Foundation to hold as those roles and relationships evolve alongside the work.

In articulating how they guide the use of their financial resources in accordance to their values, staff and board members gained more tools and firmer footing from which to make decisions, creating fertile ground for trust-based giving.