Leading Locally 2025 - Speakers

Speakers

Sarah Aguirre Origer

Director of Partnerships and Innovation

CFLeads

Mindy Aldridge

President

The Nelson Foundation

Kellie Alexander

Network Engagement Manager

CFLeads

Leon Andrews

President & CEO

Equal Measure

Mohammed Arham

Intern

Sasaki Foundation

Mares Asfaha

Associate Director, Programs

Philanthropy Northwest

Charles Aull

Executive Director, Center for Policy and Research

Kentucky Chamber of Commerce

Misty Avila

Vice President & Chief Strategy Officer

James B McClatchy Foundation

Phoebe Backler

Senior Community Partner

Tillotson Funds, New Hampshire Charitable Foundation

Reginald Ballard

Vice President of Policy and Communications

The NEA Foundation

Lilliane Ballesteros

Executive Director

Latino Community Fund of Washington State

Roque Barros

Executive Director

Imperial Valley Wellness Foundation

Missy Batman

Chief Operating Officer

Heart of Illinois Community Foundation

Dionne Baux

Chief Programs Officer

Main Street America

Cassie Bean

Director of Programs

National Center for Family Philanthropy

Natalie Beck

CEO

Heart of Illinois Community Foundation

Lynette Bell

President

Truist Foundation

Courtney Bengtson

Chief Strategy Officer

Wichita Foundation

Estefany Benitez

Program Manager

Hideo Sasaki Foundation

Iris Bieri

Chief of Staff

Rochester Area Community Foundation

Catie Bitzan Amundsen

Partner

Lathrop GPM

Steina Bjorgvinsdottir

Executive Director

Funder Safeguarding Collaborative

Fred Blackwell

Chief Executive Officer

The San Francisco Foundation

Mendi Blue Paca

President & CEO

Fairfield County's Community Foundation

Kelly Borgia

Director of Brand Engagement

Gulf Coast Community Foundation

Erin Borla

Executive Director & Trustee

Roundhouse Foundation

Yvette Bowden

Assistant County Administrator

Boulder County

Nicole Bronzan

Vice President, Communications and Content

Council on Foundations

Cali Brooks

President & CEO

Adirondack Foundation

Cynthia Brown

Director Center for Entrepreneurship

Louisville Urban League

Tiara Brown

Network Coordinator

The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation

Megan Campbell

Senior Director of Programs & Strategy

Feedback Labs

Susan Carter

Executive Director

CLA Foundation

Melissa Rhodes Carter

Senior Manager, Community

Walmart.org

Ann Searight Christiano

Founder & Director

Center for Public Interest Communications

Otha Cole

Director of Strategy and Communications

Nonprofit Sustainability Initiative

Stuart Comstock-Gay

President and CEO

Delaware Community Foundation

Cari Cullen

Program Officer, Domestic Funds

Center for Disaster Philanthropy

Heidi Curtis

Senior Director, Community Leadership and Education

Florida Blue Foundation

Ramona Dallum

Sr. VP, Community Leadership

Community Foundation of Louisville

Anh Thang Dao-Shah

Principal Reseacher

Creative Equity Research Partners

Angela Davis

Host

Minnesota Public Radio

Ryan Deal

Director, Community Philanthropy

Fairfield County's Community Foundation

Angela Deane

Chief Development Officer

Human Rights Watch

Mattie DeCarlo

Grantmaking Officer

Bush Foundation

Elizabeth Demetriou

Sr. Director, Economic Development

LISC

Andrea Devening

Senior Program Officer

LISC

Victoria Din

Senior Vice President, U.S. Public Sector

Mastercard

Alex Dunlop

Chief Business Development Officer

LOR Foundation

Kate Dupont Phillips

Executive Director

Healthy Communities Delaware

Courtney English

Chief Policy Officer and Senior Advisory to the Mayor

City of Atlanta

Kathleen Enright

President and CEO

Council on Foundations

Evan Feinberg

Senior Vice President

Stand Together

Lottie Ferguson

Vice President, Development and Donor Services

Community Foundation of Greater Flint

Frank Fernandez

President and CEO

Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta

Cara-Marie Findlay

US Safeguarding Advisor

Funding Safeguarding Collaborative

Shaun Floerke

President and CEO

Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation

Jessica Ford

Chief Communications Officer

Arkansas Community Foundation

Michelle Foster

President and CEO

Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation

Natalie Fotias

Vice President, Communications

The Skillman Foundation

Ruth Gao

Associate General Counsel

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Ashleigh Gardere

President

PolicyLink

Nilofar Gardezi

Program Officer & Grants Manager

Dean & Margaret Lesher Foundation

Melissa Gavin

CEO

RE-AMP Network

Keely Gilliland

Chief of Staff

Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga

Aron Goldman

Trainer/Advisor

ABFE

David Goodman

Independent Governance Consultant

Philanthropy Data Commons

Daniel Gould

Vice President of Investments & Operations

Marguerite Casey Foundation

Romanita Hairston

CEO

M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust

Rachel Hamalainen

Senior Vice President

CCS Fundraising

Ash Hanson

Creative Executive Officer (CEO)

Department of Public Transformation

John Harper

Chief Executive Officer

FSG

Sharon Hobenshield

Executive Director

Kw'umut Lelum Foundation

Shira Hodges

Senior Advisor

Philanthropy Network Greater Philadelphia

Eric Hozempa

Chief Executive Officer

Longmont Community Foundation

Tyler Hurley

Strategic Communications Director

Tiwahe Foundation

Stephanie Hyre

Chief Program Officer

The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation

Mauri Ingram

President & CEO

Whatcom Community Foundation

Erin Johnson

Vice President, Community Investment

Central Carolina Community Foundation

Elizabeth Kane

Managing Director, Core Services

John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

Yoo-Jin Kang

Director, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Programs

Council on Foundations

Harrison Kanzler

Executive Director

Affordable Housing, Education and Development (AHEAD), Inc.

Linda Keely

Fiscal Sponsorship Transition Consultant

Maryland Philanthropy Network

Juliana Kerr

Senior Program Director, Migration and Immigrant Communities

Walder Foundation

Winter Kinne

President & CEO

Community Foundation of the Ozarks

Billy Kinney

Assistant Director

Hui Makaʻāinana o Makana

Debbie Kobak

Managing Director

Arabella Advisors

Alison Kolwaite

Chief Growth and Communications Officer

GlobalGiving

Amy Kovac-Ashley

Executive Director

Tiny News Collective

Britt Lake

Chief Executive Officer

Feedback Labs

Phillip Lanham

President | CEO

Gulf Coast Community Foundation

Heather Larkin

President & CEO

Arkansas Community Foundation

Greg Larson

Partner

Lathrop GPM LLP

Jennifer Lawrence

Executive Director

Hideo Sasaki Foundation

Mariah Levison

President & CEO

Convergence Center for Policy Resolution

Michelle Liberatore

Sr. Program Manager

Verizon

Drew Lindsay

Senior Editor, Special Projects

Chronicle of Philanthropy

Tito Llantada

Director of Networks & Programs

Trust for Civic Life

Sara Lomelin

CEO

Philanthropy Together

Katy Love

Project Manager

Fund for Shared Insight

Hanna Love

Fellow

Brookings Institution

HB Lozito

Executive Director

Out in the Open

Molly Lyons

Senior Director of Communications

National Center for Family Philanthropy

Chelsea Mason

Director of External Relations

The Eisner Foundation

Ben McDearmon

Director, Legal Resources

Council on Foundations

Ann McGlynn

Executive Director

Tapestry Farms

Kathlyn Mead

Chief Impact Officer

BQuest Foundation

Kerry Medek

Managing Director

GHR Foundation

Margot Melcon

Program Staff

Zellerbach Family Foundation

Aaron Miller

Head of National Partnerships

GKFF + Tulsa Community Foundation

Elaine Mintz

Vice President, Strategy & External Relations

Fairfield County's Community Foundation

John Mohr

Chief Information Officer

MacArthur Foundation

Ciciley "CC" Moore

Director, Office of the President, Special Initiatives

W.K. Kellogg Foundation

David Mortenson

Chairman

M. A. Mortenson Company

Adair Mosley

Chief Executive Officer

African American Leadership Forum

Jake Muszynski

Head of Consulting & Principal

Creative Fundraising Advisors

Karama Neal

Strategic Project Director

Asset Funders Network

VanNhi Nguyen

Vice President, Community Engagement

JPMorgan Chase

Emily Nilsen

Director of Community Initiatives

Impact Development Fund

Tim Niyonsenga

Senior Program Officer

Michigan Health Endowment Fund

Ashley Novak Butler

Executive Director

Lift a Life Novak Family Foundation

Shelly O'Quinn

CEO

Innovia Foundation

Isaiah Oliver

President

The Community Foundation for Northeast Florida

Anastasia Ordonez

Director, HEAL Strategic Communications

Race Forward

Diana Otero

Senior Director of Strategic Partnerships & Innovation

Latino Community Foundation

Nathanial Owen

Director, Place-based Investing

U.S. Bank

Brenda Palms

Chief Executive Officer

The North Lawndale Employment Network

Steve Peterson

Board Chair

CommunityGiving

Ryan Priester

Senior Program Officer, Chicago Commitment

John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

Chris Quaka

President & CEO

Benton Community Foundation

Komal Razvi

Associate Director of Systems Change

The Rippel Foundation

Erika Rickard

Director, Courts and Communities

The Pew Charitable Trusts

David Rosado

Senior Advisor, Community Philanthropy

Council on Foundations

Elizabeth Ruen

Program Officer

Helmsley Charitable Trust

Karen Rundlet

CEO/Executive Director

Institute for Nonprofit News

Tracy Russ

SVP, Civic Leadership Strategy and Innovation

Foundation For The Carolinas

R.T. Rybak

President & CEO

The Minneapolis Foundation

Sonya Salanti

Director, Neil and Louise Tillotson Funds

New Hampshire Charitable Foundation

Anthony Santiago

Principal

Outside iN Strategies

Joe Scantlebury

President & CEO

Living Cities, Inc.

Mikaela Schlesinger

Project Manager

National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Kate Schmidgall

Director

BitterSweet Creative

Jamie Schumacher Kalakaru-Mava

Program Officer, Creative Placemaking and Communications

LISC

Kristen Scott Kennedy

Executive Vice President

Council on Foundations

Ralph Serpe

President & CEO

Adams County Community Foundation

Kimberly Serrano

Director, Center for Inclusion and Belonging

American Immigration Council

Carmen Simon

Sr. Manager, Business Alignment and Development

Keecha Harris and Associates, Inc.

Andrew Simon

Editor-in-chief

Chronicle of Philanthropy

Mansha Siraj

Project Manager

Philanthropy Data Commons

Steven Joul

President & CEO

CommunityGiving

Oliver Smith

Assistant Vice President - Twin Cities Place-based Investing Program Manager

U.S. Bank Impact Finance

Germaine Smith-Baugh

President and CEO

Urban League of Broward County

Javier Alberto Soto

President & CEO

The Denver Foundation

Sterling Speirn

Donor Advisor/Trustee Emeritus

Greater Washington Community Foundation

Thaddeus Squire

Chief Commons Steward

Social Impact Commons

Rusty Stahl

Founder, President & CEO

Fund The People

Trent Stamp

CEO

The Eisner Foundation

Lauren Stebbins

Program Officer

The Barra Foundation

Erik Stegman

Chief Executive Officer

Native Americans in Philanthropy

Andrew Stein

President & CEO

Children's Foundation

Daniel Stid

Nonresident Senior Fellow

American Enterprise Institute

Sara Straubel

Senior Program Officer

The Ahmanson Foundation

Michael Stroik

Vice President, Community Impact

3M

Mary Thomas

President and CEO

CFLeads

Joanna Trotter

Executive Director and Senior Program Officer for Global Philanthropy for Neighborhood Development

JPMorganChase

Daniel Valdez

Chief of External Affairs

Welcoming America

Kevin van Bronkhorst

Executive Director, National Standards

Council on Foundations

Nancy Van Milligen

President & CEO

The Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque

Chelsea VanHook

Senior Program Officer, Invest Louisville

Community Foundation of Louisville

Monika Varma

President & CEO

BoardSource

Jumana Vasi

Director, Great Lakes Thriving Communities Grantmaking Program

Minneapolis Foundation

Kevin Walker

President and CEO

Northwest Area Foundation

Jun-Li Wang

Associate Director

Springboard for The Arts

Tucker Wannamaker

Chief Experience Officer

THRIVE IMPACT

Anna Wasescha

President

West Central Initiative

Alesha Washington

President + CEO

Seattle Foundation

Karen White

President and CEO

Northwest Minnesota Foundation

Christen Wiggins

Senior Director, Community Wealth

Chicago Community Trust

Susan Wildes

Community Leadership and Education Senior Manager

Florida Blue Foundation

Randall Woodfin

Mayor

City of Birmingham, AL

Carol Worley

General Counsel

California Community Foundation

Winoka Yepa

Director of Research and Education

Native Americans in Philanthropy

Nidale Zouhir

Senior Manager, Government Affairs

Council on Foundations

Questions?

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