Mercy Corps Appoints Interim CEO Following Abuse Scandal Involving Its Founder (Transitions)

Mercy Corps

Beth deHamel, chief financial officer at the humanitarian-aid group, will step in as interim CEO following the resignation of Neal Keny-Guyer last week.

Keny-Guyer, who led the group since 1994, departed after reports the charity’s top management ignored credible allegations that its founder, Ellsworth Culver, sexually abused his daughter.

McKnight Foundation

Kate Wolford will retire next month after 13 years as president of the $2.3 billion foundation in Minneapolis. Debby Landesman, its board chair, will serve as interim president until a permanent successor has been hired.

Mozilla Foundation

J. Bob Alotta, executive director of the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice for the past eight years, has been appointed vice president for global programs. The web browser’s foundation reported $496 million in assets in 2016, according to the most recent Form 990 available.

Amherst H. Wilder Foundation

Brad Hewitt, former CEO of Thrivent Financial, has been appointed interim CEO while the $123 million foundation searches for its next leader.

More New CEOs

Ryan Fewins-Bliss, interim executive director of the Michigan College Access Network since March, has accepted the role permanently. Previously he was deputy director for community and partner mobilization at the organization.

Susan Heaton, director of business development executive education at North Carolina State University, has been named CEO of Canines for Service.

Phyllis Martin, vice president of community impact at the United Way of Northeastern Florida, will now be CEO of the Tri-County Cradle to Career Collaborative, in North Charleston, S.C.

Jeff Moyer, executive director of the Rodale Institute, has been promoted to CEO of this research organization in regenerative organic agriculture.

Kevin Orangers is the new executive director of the Space Foundation Discovery Center, in Colorado Springs. Previously he was vice president of programs and operations at the National Liberty Museum.

Kristin Purdy, a strategist for GPS Impact, has been tapped as executive director of the Funders’ Committee on Civic Participation.

Jeffrey Savit, chief development officer of Prizmah: Center for Jewish Day Schools, has been appointed president and CEO of Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Boston. He succeeds Kimberlee Schumacher, who has served in the top role since 2017.

Julie Shapiro, executive director of the Door, a social-services agency for young people in New York, has been named CEO of the Fund for Public Schools.

Other Notable Appointments

Emily Borababy, director of development and external relations at From the Top, has joined the Celebrity Series of Boston as chief advancement officer.

Caitlin Burke, associate director of Conservation Trust for North Carolina, will join the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation as a program officer in January.

Avital Havusha has been named vice president for programs at the New York State Health Foundation. Most recently she was managing director for performance improvement at the Primary Care Development Corporation.

Damon Hewitt, executive director of the Executives’ Alliance for Boys and Men of Color, has joined the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law as its executive vice president.

Penny Mitchell, executive vice president and health-practice lead at Makovsky, a public-relations firm, has been appointed senior director of marketing and communications at the Lupus Research Alliance.

Terry Mularkey, chief of staff at Nova Southeastern University, has been named vice president for university advancement at Marymount University.

Jacquelyn Smiley Robinson has been hired as managing director of Deeply Rooted Productions. She previously worked in corporate finance at the Ameritech Corporation.

Len Smolburd, grants manager at the Community Foundation San Luis Obispo County, has been appointed chief program officer at the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara.

Kevin Sokol-White, chief financial officer at the Santa Fe Community Foundation, has been promoted to vice president of finance and operations.

Toccarra Thomas has been appointed director of the Joan Mitchell Center, a program of the Joan Mitchell Foundation in New Orleans. She most recently served as managing director of the Space Gallery, in Portland, Me.

April Walker, an executive director at CCS Fundraising, has been appointed director of development at Vocational Guidance Services.

Departures

Janis Avery will depart next spring after 24 years as CEO of Treehouse, a Seattle charity that works with children in foster care.

Dan Busby, president of Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability for 12 years, will retire and become president emeritus by the spring of 2020.

Kila Englebrook, CEO of the Social Enterprise Alliance since 2015, will depart at the end of the month.

Kyle Murphy, executive director of CarbonWA since 2016, is stepping down to finish law school.

Pete Tulipana, president and CEO of the Iowa West Foundation for the past eight years, will retire in 2020, pending the hiring of a successor.

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M.J. Prest has been writing about major gifts, grant making, and executive moves for the Chronicle since 2004. Email M.J.