Since 2019, The Columbus Foundation has led a human-centered design practice that helps nonprofit and social sector leaders gain a deeper understanding of our community’s assets, challenges, and needs. Done in collaboration with local nonprofits, city and regional partners, and members of the community, this innovative approach empowers individuals with firsthand experience of a community issue to help co-create solutions that promote positive change. In 2024, The Columbus Foundation’s Designing for Community Well-Being team sought to better understand why some high school students in Columbus are chronically absent from school.

The Columbus Foundation, its Supporting Foundations, and its donors have long supported Catholic Social Services through a variety of grants—including targeted investments to support the operation and renovation of the Our Lady of Guadalupe Center, increase recruitment for the Foster Grandparent Program, and help launch the pilot of Stay the Course®, among numerous other investments. In recognition of the organization’s contributions to strengthening and improving the community, The Columbus Foundation also named Catholic Social Services one of the 5 Nonprofits to Watch in 2017.