Houston Symphony and Mormon Church Get New Leaders

Houston Symphony

John Mangum, president and artistic director of the Philharmonic Society of Orange County, will be the symphony’s new executive director and CEO. He follows Mark Hanson, who departed last summer to lead the San Francisco Symphony.

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Russell Nelson, a heart surgeon and president of the church’s Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, has become the new president of the Mormon Church. Dr. Nelson — who is 93 years old — succeeds Thomas Monson, who died on January 2 at age 90.

Hoblitzelle Foundation

Paul Harris, who has been at the foundation for more than 30 years, at various times as executive vice president, president, and CEO, has retired. He named his daughter Katie Robbins as his successor. She joined the foundation in October 2016 as executive vice president.

More New CEOs

Ryan Hammond has been appointed the executive director of the Eagles Autism Challenge, an annual foot and bike race put on by the Philadelphia Eagles football team to raise money for local autism groups. Ms. Hammond was previously the executive director of the Kinney Center for Autism Education and Support at Saint Joseph’s University.

Kathy Higgins, vice president for corporate affairs at Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina and president of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation since 2000, has been promoted to chief executive officer.

Chris Johnson, CEO of Woodcraft Rangers, has joined Mending Kids International as executive director. He succeeds Marchelle Sellers, who served in the chief role since 2009.

Kim Konikow, a consultant at Artservices & Company, in Utah, has been selected as the executive director of the North Dakota Council on the Arts. She succeeds Beth Gigante Klingenstein, who has led the group since 2014.

Jessica Martin, grants and scholarships coordinator at the Greater Salina Community Foundation, in Kansas, has been promoted to president and executive director. She has served as acting interim executive director since the community fund’s previous chief, Bill Grevas, died unexpectedly in November.

Michael Melara, who has acted as interim CEO of the Diocese of Syracuse Catholic Charities for the past year, has taken the position permanently. He was previously the executive director of Catholic Charities of Onondaga County, N.Y.

Joseph Seipel, dean emeritus of Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of the Arts, will serve as the interim director of the university’s Institute for Contemporary Art, which is scheduled to open in April. Lisa Freiman announced last week that she would be stepping down as director.

Christine Taylor, director of the True Value Foundation, in Chicago, has been tapped as the new executive director of the Kohler Foundation. She succeeds Terri Yoho, who has led the foundation since 1999.

Other Notable Appointments

Dale Anglin, who consulted for the Cleveland Foundation since last spring, has officially joined the fund as program director for youth and social services.

Mark Barreiro, senior grants and operations manager at the New York State Health Foundation, has joined the John A. Hartford Foundation as senior grants officer.

Meghan Biss, senior technical adviser to the director of exempt organizations at the Internal Revenue Service, has been named of counsel of the exempt organizations practice group at the law firm Caplin & Drysdale.

Nelson Beckford, a program officer at the Cleveland Foundation from 2008 to 2014, has returned to the foundation as program director for neighborhood revitalization & engagement. He has spent the past four years as senior program officer for the A Strong Neighborhood program area at Saint Luke’s Foundation.

Kristi Brennan, planned-giving representative at the Salvation Army Empire State Division, has been promoted to director of planned giving.

Brady Josephson, the founder of Shift Agency and the writer behind the Re:Charity blog, has become vice president of innovation and optimization at NextAfter, a fundraising consultancy in Frisco, Tex.

Sean Kershaw, executive director of the Citizens League in St. Paul, has joined the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation as vice president of the Wilder Center for Communities.

Emiko Ono, a program officer at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation since 2011, will be the new program director for the foundation’s Performing Arts Program.

Megan Murphy Wolf, director of class campaigns and annual fund leadership giving at Amherst College, has been named director of partnerships at the Solidago Foundation.

Candy Yoder, president and CEO of Child and Parent Services, in Indiana, will become chief program officer at the Community Foundation of Elkhart County, effective July 1.

Departures

Kenneth Clarke, president and CEO of the Pritzker Military Museum & Library, has given notice that he will resign on February 2.

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