Open Society Foundations Selects New Head of U.S. Programs

Open Society Foundations

Tom Perriello will become executive director of the organization’s U.S. programs next month. A former U.S. representative for Virginia, he most recently served as special envoy for the African Great Lakes region under President Obama.

Council on Foundations

Kathleen Enright, president of Grantmakers for Effective Organizations for 17 years, will become president and CEO on March 5. She replaces Gene Cochrane, who has served as interim president and CEO since Vikki Spruill departed in June to lead the New England Aquarium.

Read more of our coverage of Enright’s plans for the organization.

New York University

Robert Cashion Sr. will become vice president for university development and alumni relations on December 3. Last year, the university raised more than $700 million. He was most recently Harvard University’s senior associate vice president for development and senior associate dean for development at Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

More New CEOs

Richard Burns, former executive director of the NYC LGBT Community Center, has stepped in as interim CEO of Lambda Legal. He replaces Rachel Tiven, who resigned in August, while the organization conducts an executive search.

Marisa Ferst, executive director of ElderNet of Lower Merion and Narberth, has been hired as executive director of the Genuardi Family Foundation.

Valerie Hillings, curator and associate director of curatorial affairs at the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi museum, has been named director of the North Carolina Museum of Art. She succeeds Larry Wheeler, who has retired after 24 years at the helm.

William Sperling, acting chief executive officer at Child360 for the past eight months, has been named permanently to the top role. Before his interim appointment, he was chief operating officer and general counsel.

Scott Stephenson, vice president for collections and exhibitions, has been promoted to CEO of the Museum of the American Revolution. This history museum in Philadelphia opened last year.

Deborah Velazquez, associate director at the Altman Foundation, will become president at the end of the year. She succeeds Karen Rosa, vice president and executive director of the Altman Foundation since 1991, who is retiring.

Equest

This social-service organization, which uses horses and equine therapy to help disabled children, adults, and veterans, has made changes to its staff.

Margo McClinton Stoglin, founder and CEO of the fundraising consulting firm CRM & Associates, has been hired as chief philanthropy officer.

Christine Volkmer, director of development, has been promoted to director of community engagement.

Other Notable Appointments

Robert Mathias, founder of the consulting firm Channel Rock Strategic Advisory and former managing director of Ogilvy & Mather’s Washington and San Francisco offices, has joined the National Park Foundation as chief of external affairs.

Barbara Maylath, director of development at the University of Delaware’s College of Engineering, has been named director of leadership giving at the Moore College of Art & Design.

Vernon Meacham, director of development at the Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, has been promoted to chief advancement officer.

Sheel Patel, chief financial officer at Covariance Capital Management, has joined Houston Endowment as vice president for finance.

Alex Saingchin, program director at the Common Counsel Foundation, has been named vice president for community investments and partnerships at the East Bay Community Foundation.

Rob Schneider, division chief for global partnerships at the U.S. Agency for International Development, has become the Lemelson Foundation’s senior director of strategy.

Tyra Sidberry has joined the Letters Foundation as director of letters and grants. The foundation was created by the billionaire financier Warren Buffett and his sister, Doris Buffett. Sidberry is a retired consultant to family foundations in the areas of early care and education and integrative cancer therapy.

Departures

Rahn Porter, chief financial and administrative officer at the Colorado Health Foundation since 2013, has retired.

Donn Weinberg, executive vice president and in-house counsel at the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation since 1993 and a nephew of the $1.9 billion grant maker’s founders, has retired.

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