December 28, 2016 | Read Time: 2 minutes
People in the nonprofit world aren’t afraid to take on tough tasks. Bryan Stevenson is trying to spur a national reckoning with America’s racist history. Laura Callanan strives to make impact investing work for artists. John Hennessy helped Stanford University complete three billion-dollar capital campaigns.
Here’s a look back at some of the people tackling ambitious goals we profiled in 2016.
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News40 Under 40: Max Kenner: Prison Path to Higher Learning
A fervent believer in the power of the humanities and sciences to transform lives creates a rigorous academic program through which inmates can earn associate and bachelor’s degrees. -
News40 Under 40: Lateefah Simon: ‘Moving at the Speed of Twitter’
The teen mother got her first nonprofit job at 17, counseling young women on the streets of San Francisco. At 26, she won a MacArthur “genius” grant for her methods of helping poor young women of color. -
NewsLawyer Mobilizes Nonprofit to Force a Reckoning on Racism
Acclaimed author and death-row attorney Bryan Stevenson wants America to learn how a long history of injustice underlies many of today’s most vexing problems. -
NewsFundraising Lessons From Stanford’s $12 Billion Man
Outgoing Stanford President John Hennessy raised billions for the university by steering clear of talking about goals in dollar terms and communicating clearly what a gift would accomplish. -
NewsA Young CEO Seizes Opportunity to Sell Her Group’s Expertise
Aria Finger, 33, brought a track record of innovation and a knack for reaching her generational peers when she ascended last fall to the top job at volunteerism charity DoSomething.org. -
NewsNew Venture Connects Socially Minded Artists With Cash
Laura Callanan worries that “new philanthropy,” which tends to focus on creative investments in education and social-service nonprofits, will leave cultural causes behind. -
NewsFatherhood Sparked J.B. Pritzker’s Crusade for Kids
The Hyatt hotel heir, investor, and philanthropist says early-childhood education is the key to the nation’s economic future. He wishes more donors agreed. -
NewsFlint Water Crisis Proves Mettle of New Foundation Leader
Under the leadership of 37-year-old President Ridgway White, the Mott Foundation provided money to deal with the city’s unsafe water even before a state of emergency had been declared.