Catalyst Fund for Nonprofits: An Interim Assessment

This report evaluates progress in the first two years of the Catalyst Fund for Nonprofits’ five-year, $1.9 million effort to support strategic collaborations in the Boston area. The collaborative model of funding has shown itself to be of benefit to both funders and nonprofits through shared learning, leadership development, and administrative efficiencies. It has, however, been challenging to measure uniform outcomes across the portfolio of participants and to see immediate cost benefits. There is also a sense that, given the number of troubled nonprofits, the Fund has not yet reached the volume of potentially-eligible nonprofits that it could support.