Patrick Gaspard Will Take the Helm of the Center for American Progress

Center for American Progress

Patrick Gaspard has been named president and CEO of the progressive think tank and CEO of the Center for American Progress Action Fund.

Gaspard was previously president of the Open Society Foundations, which he left in December after three years of leading the $18 billion foundations established by the billionaire investor George Soros.

Black Economic Alliance Foundation

Samantha Tweedy has been selected as its first president, effective August 23. Currently she is chief partnerships and impact officer at the Robin Hood Foundation.

William and Flora Hewlett Foundation

Jehan Velji will become director of its Effective Philanthropy Group on September 20. She is currently managing director of portfolio strategy and management at Blue Meridian.

(The Hewlett Foundation is a financial supporter of the Chronicle.)

Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles

Noah Farkas, a rabbi at the Los Angeles synagogue Valley Beth Shalom, will become its president and CEO on January 1, 2022.

He will succeed Jay Sanderson, who has led the federation since 2010 and is departing in December.

Simons Foundation

David Spergel will be the next president of the $4.6 billion foundation. He succeeds Marilyn Simons, who co-founded the grant maker with her husband, Jim, in 1994. Jim Simons is a mathematician and hedge-fund manager who founded Renaissance Technologies.

Spergel, an astrophysicist, most recently directed the Center for Computational Astrophysics at the Flatiron Institute, the internal research division of the Simons Foundation.

More New CEOs

Fatima Angeles has been named executive director of the Levi Strauss Foundation, effective August 16. She currently is vice president of programs at the California Wellness Foundation, where she has worked for 23 years.

Juliet Buder, chief development officer at the Abaarso Network, is now executive director of the Bellevue Schools Foundation.

Paul Crosby has been appointed president and CEO of the Frances and Craig Lindner Center of Hope. Crosby is a psychiatrist, as well as associate professor and executive vice chair of psychiatry and behavioral neuroscience at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

Khori Dastoor, general director of Opera San José, will join the Houston Grand Opera as general director and CEO in January.

Mishaela Durán has been tapped as the next president and CEO of the Forum for Youth Investment. Her new role begins September 7. She is a senior executive on the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Administration for Children and Families’ leadership team. Durán will succeed Karen Pittman, its co-founder who stepped down in February.

Kori Gregg, an educational consultant, will serve as the first CEO of the Cowley College Foundation.

Perry Maddox, CEO of Restless Development, will become CEO of All Hands and Hearts, effective September 1. He will succeed Erik Dyson, who has led the international disaster-relief organization for eight years.

Briana Marbury has been named executive director of the Interledger Foundation, a new nonprofit group that advances financial inclusion for women and people of color in the digital economy. Most recently she was a financial strategy consultant at the environmental organization 350.org.

Benjamin Miller, chief strategy officer, has been promoted to president of Well Being Trust.

Michael Morsberger will become chief philanthropy officer at Jupiter Medical Center and president of the Jupiter Medical Center Foundation on August 9. Currently he is vice president for advancement at the University of Central Florida and CEO of the UCF Foundation.

Russell Wigginton has been tapped as the National Civil Rights Museum’s next president. He has served on the museum’s board and most recently was chief postsecondary impact officer at Tennessee’s State Collaborative on Reforming Education.

Kresge Foundation

The $4.2 billion foundation has hired three new program staffers.

Ashley Johnson, founding executive director of the Detroit College Access Network, is now a program officer for education.

In addition, Arturo Garcia and Chikako Yamauchi have joined the foundation as strategic learning and evaluation officers.

Garcia was previously learning manager at First 5 Los Angeles.

Yamauchi was most recently senior manager of evaluation, research and strategic learning at Community Partners in Los Angeles.

Hispanic Federation

The federation has promoted three of its senior staffers.

Ingrid Àlvarez has been promoted from New England regional director to vice president for policy and strategic engagement.

Laudi Campo has become Florida state director after serving as deputy director in the Florida state office since 2019.

Yanidsi Velez, Florida state director, is now New England regional director, based in Connecticut.

Next Generation Learning Challenges

The education group has named three changes to its staff.

Carlos Beato, founding principal at the International High School at Langley Park, is now co-director of next generation learning innovation and practice.

Stefanie Blouin, deputy director, has become senior program officer.

Andy Calkins, the group’s director since 2011, will next serve as co-director of next generation learning ecosystem strategy and development.

San Diego Foundation

The $1.1 billion foundation has hired three new directors.

Christiana DeBenedict has joined as director of environmental initiatives. Most recently she was director of environment leadership initiatives at the University of San Diego’s Nonprofit Institute.

Jason Rogers, senior vice president of business development at Cetera Financial Group, is now director of wealth adviser relations.

Lorena Nava Ruggero, director of college and community relations at Grossmont College, has become director of communications.

Other Notable Appointments

Alphonso Atkins Jr. will become deputy director for diversity, equity, inclusion, and access at the Philadelphia Museum of Art on August 16. He joins the museum from the University of South Carolina Upstate where he was special assistant to the chancellor for equity and inclusion and chief diversity officer.

Zane Bail has been promoted to chief operating officer at the Northland Foundation. She has worked at the community foundation since 1997, most recently as director of development and special projects.

Margaret Connelly, a consultant at Eplan Group and director at Coxe Curry & Associates, is returning to the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation as acting managing director for founder initiatives. Also, Kelley Gulley has joined the foundation chief of staff. Most recently she worked at the James Irvine Foundation as initiative director.

Lindsay Fischer, artistic director of YOU Dance at the National Ballet of Canada, has been named assistant education director and principal company teacher at the Sarasota Ballet.

Robyn Hamilton, a consultant and founder of the Hamilton Experience, will be the first executive director of the Dogwood Health Trust’s Impact Health program.

Elana Lopez, chief people officer at Change.org, has been appointed senior vice president and chief people officer at Americares.

Luke Ragland, president of Ready Colorado, has been named senior vice president of the Daniels Fund’s grants program.

Marie Williams, senior program officer at the Stoneleigh Foundation, has been promoted to deputy director.

Charles Wright Jr. will become vice president of strategy, finance, and operations at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching on September 7. Currently he is a consultant and managing director of Wright Associates.

Departures

Kelly Bruggeman, director of community relations at First Interstate and executive director of its foundation, is retiring after 30 years working at the bank.

James Cuno will retire after a decade as president and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust.

Kelly Tweeddale, executive director of the San Francisco Ballet since 2019, has stepped down.

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