Privacy Policy
Privacy Policy
Effective Date: June 9, 2026
Last Updated: June 9, 2026
Chicago Foundation for Women (“CFW,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting the personal information entrusted to us. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, retain, and protect personal information in connection with our websites, online forms, grantmaking and application processes, capacity-building and leadership development activities, advocacy efforts, convenings, educational programming, fundraising, donations, events, digital communications, and related platforms and services.
CFW is a nonprofit organization. CFW does not provide direct social services to individuals. We use personal information to operate and improve our programs; communicate with donors, applicants, grantees, event participants, partners, and supporters; process donations and registrations; administer grants and programs; conduct fundraising and outreach; and comply with legal obligations.
This Privacy Policy applies to information we collect through our websites, online forms, applications, communications, events, and related services. Where legally required, we will request separate consent for particular uses of information.
1. Information We Collect
We collect only the information reasonably necessary to support our organizational activities and provide our services. The types of personal information we may collect include:
Contact and identity information, such as your name, email address, mailing address, phone number, organization, title, and similar contact details.
Donation and payment-related information, such as donation amount, donation history, billing information, transaction details, and related records. Payment card information is generally processed by third-party payment processors, and CFW does not intend to store full payment card numbers unless specifically disclosed at the point of collection.
Program, grant, application, and event information, such as application details, registration information, attendance records, organizational information, demographic information you choose to provide, and communications related to programs, grants, convenings, leadership development, advocacy, or events.
Communications information, such as messages, inquiries, survey responses, preferences, feedback, and other information you send to us.
Website and technical information, such as IP address, browser type, device information, pages visited, referring URLs, dates and times of visits, interactions with emails or forms, cookies, pixels, analytics data, and similar online activity information.
Voluntary demographic or survey information, where you choose to provide it in connection with an application, event, program, survey, or other CFW activity.
We ask that you not submit Social Security numbers, driver’s license or state identification numbers, full payment card numbers, medical information, health insurance information, biometric information, genetic information, or other sensitive information unless we specifically request it and explain why it is needed.
2. How We Collect Information
We may collect personal information:
- Directly from you when you complete forms, register for events, submit applications, make donations, sign up for communications, respond to surveys, contact us, or otherwise interact with CFW;
- Automatically when you visit our websites or interact with our digital communications;
- From service providers that support our operations, such as donation processors, event platforms, website hosting providers, analytics providers, communication vendors, and application-management tools; and
- From partners, collaborators, or publicly available sources where appropriate for our nonprofit, grantmaking, fundraising, advocacy, or programmatic activities.
3. Cookies and Analytics
We and our service providers may use cookies, pixels, web beacons, analytics tools, and similar technologies to operate our websites, understand website traffic and usage, improve our communications, maintain security, and evaluate the effectiveness of our outreach. These technologies may also be used to support digital advertising, audience development, remarketing, fundraising outreach, and measuring the effectiveness of advertising and communications campaigns across websites, social media platforms, and other digital channels.
You can usually set your browser to refuse or delete cookies, but some website features may not function properly without them.
If we use third-party analytics, advertising, fundraising, or social media tools, those providers may collect information through their own technologies subject to their own privacy terms. CFW does not authorize these providers to use personal information collected through our services for their own independent marketing except as disclosed in this Privacy Policy or permitted by law.
4. How We Use Personal Information
We may use personal information to:
- Operate, provide, maintain, and improve our websites, programs, events, communications, and services;
- Process donations, registrations, applications, grant-related submissions, and event participation;
- Communicate with you about CFW programs, funding opportunities, events, advocacy, fundraising, newsletters, updates, and administrative matters;
- Respond to inquiries, requests, feedback, and other communications;
- Manage relationships with donors, supporters, applicants, grantees, partners, vendors, and event participants;
- Administer grantmaking, capacity-building, leadership development, advocacy, educational, and convening activities;
- Analyze website, email, event, fundraising, and program engagement;
- Maintain the security, integrity, and functionality of our systems;
- Comply with legal, accounting, tax, audit, reporting, and recordkeeping obligations;
- Enforce our terms, agreements, and policies;
- Protect rights, privacy, safety, and property; and
- Prevent, investigate, or respond to fraud, security incidents, illegal activity, or misuse of our services.
5. How We Disclose Personal Information
CFW does not sell or rent personal information. CFW does not share personal information with third parties for their own marketing or promotional purposes.
We may disclose personal information in the following limited circumstances:
Service providers. We may disclose information to vendors and service providers that help us operate our websites, host data, process donations, manage email and SMS communications, administer grants or applications, support events, provide analytics, maintain security, or perform other services for CFW. This may include advertising, analytics, fundraising, CRM, and social media platform providers that assist CFW with communications, outreach, and campaign performance measurement. These providers may use personal information only to provide services to CFW or as otherwise permitted by their agreements with us.
Program partners and collaborators. We may disclose information to partners, consultants, reviewers, venues, co-sponsors, speakers, facilitators, collaborators, or other parties where reasonably necessary to administer a program, grant, application, event, convening, leadership development activity, advocacy effort, or service you request or participate in.
With your direction or consent. We may disclose information when you ask us to do so or when you give us permission.
Legal, compliance, and safety purposes. We may disclose information to comply with subpoenas, court orders, legal processes, law enforcement requests, reporting obligations, or other legal requirements; to establish, exercise, or defend legal rights; to investigate or prevent fraud, security incidents, illegal activity, or threats to safety; or to enforce applicable terms and policies.
Organizational transactions. If CFW is involved in a merger, restructuring, transfer of assets, fiscal sponsorship transition, or similar organizational transaction, personal information may be transferred as part of that transaction, subject to appropriate protections.
Deidentified or aggregated information. We may disclose information that has been aggregated or deidentified so that it does not reasonably identify an individual.
6. Service Provider Safeguards
Where CFW discloses personal information concerning Illinois residents to service providers, we require appropriate contractual protections, including obligations to use the information only for authorized purposes, maintain confidentiality, and implement and maintain reasonable security measures to protect the information from unauthorized access, acquisition, destruction, use, modification, or disclosure.
7. SMS and Mobile Messaging
If you opt in to receive text messages from CFW, we may use your mobile number and messaging consent status to send the messages you requested or agreed to receive.
CFW does not sell, rent, or share SMS opt-in data or mobile messaging consent information with third parties or affiliates for their own marketing or promotional purposes. We may disclose SMS-related information to service providers solely as needed to deliver messages, manage opt-outs, maintain records, and support compliance.
You may opt out of text messages by following the instructions provided in the message, such as replying STOP, where available.
8. Email Communications and Marketing Preferences
If you receive newsletters, event notices, fundraising communications, or other promotional emails from CFW, you may unsubscribe by using the unsubscribe link in the email or by contacting us.
Even if you opt out of promotional communications, we may still send you non-promotional messages, such as donation receipts, event confirmations, application-related communications, grant administration messages, security notices, legal notices, or other administrative communications.
9. Donation and Payment Information
CFW may collect and use donation-related information to process donations, issue receipts, maintain donor records, conduct fundraising, comply with tax and accounting obligations, and communicate with donors.
Payment processing may be handled by third-party payment processors. Those processors may collect and process payment information in accordance with their own privacy and security practices. CFW does not intend to store full payment card numbers unless specifically disclosed at the point of collection.
10. Grant, Application, and Program Information
If you submit information in connection with a grant, program, event, leadership development activity, capacity-building opportunity, advocacy initiative, or other CFW activity, we may use that information to review, administer, evaluate, and communicate about the relevant activity.
We may disclose application or program-related information to reviewers, consultants, partners, collaborators, funders, vendors, or other parties where reasonably necessary to administer, evaluate, report on, or improve the relevant activity, subject to appropriate confidentiality or use restrictions where applicable.
11. Biometric Information
CFW does not intentionally collect biometric identifiers or biometric information, such as fingerprints, voiceprints, retina or iris scans, hand or face geometry scans, or other biometric information used to identify or authenticate an individual.
If CFW decides to collect biometric identifiers or biometric information in the future, we will provide any required notices, obtain any required written releases or consents, publish any required retention and destruction schedule, and follow any other requirements required by applicable law before doing so.
12. Retention and Secure Disposal
We retain personal information for as long as reasonably necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy, comply with legal, tax, audit, accounting, grant administration, donor management, and recordkeeping requirements, resolve disputes, enforce agreements, and maintain security.
When personal information is no longer needed, we dispose of it using reasonable measures designed to protect against unauthorized access or use. For materials containing personal information, CFW uses disposal methods intended to render the information unreadable, unusable, and undecipherable, such as shredding, redaction, secure deletion, destruction, or other appropriate safeguards.
13. Security
CFW uses reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect personal information from unauthorized access, acquisition, destruction, use, modification, or disclosure.
However, no website, platform, transmission, or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. You should use care when submitting information online or through electronic communications.
14. Data Incidents
If CFW becomes aware of a breach of personal information, we will evaluate the incident and provide notices to affected individuals, regulators, service providers, partners, or other parties as required by applicable law, including the Illinois Personal Information Protection Act where applicable.
15. Your Choices
You may request that we update, correct, or delete certain personal information by contacting us. We will review requests and respond as required by applicable law and our recordkeeping obligations.
You may unsubscribe from marketing or newsletter emails by using the unsubscribe link in the email or by contacting us. You may opt out of text messages by following the instructions in the message.
Some information may need to be retained for legal, tax, accounting, audit, donation, grant administration, security, or legitimate organizational purposes.
16. Third-Party Websites and Platforms
Our websites, emails, forms, or communications may link to third-party websites, platforms, donation processors, event tools, social media pages, or other services that are not operated by CFW. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party services you use.
17. Children's Privacy
Our services are not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under 13 without appropriate consent, we will take reasonable steps to delete it.
18. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The updated version will be posted on our website with an updated effective date. Material changes will be communicated as required by law.
19. Contact Us
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us at:
Chicago Foundation for Women
140 S. Dearborn St. Suite 400
Chicago, IL 60603
Phone: 312-577-2801
Email: info@cfw.org