New Chief Executives Named at Two Major Grant Makers

Two large foundations — the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and the Heinz Endowments — have named new chief executives.

The Moore foundation, in San Francisco, has appointed Steven J. McCormick, the former president of the Nature Conservancy, as its new president, effective January 21. He will succeed Edward E. Penhoet, who has held the position since 2004 and is now retiring.

“Steve has considerable experience successfully operating a large international nonprofit organization, and that business acumen was very important to us,” says Greg Nelson, a spokesman for the foundation. “Also, being nationally and internationally recognized as a leader in environmental conservation was important since that’s 50 percent of our funding.”

Last month, Mr. McCormick abruptly resigned from his position at the Nature Conservancy with an early-morning e-mail message to the organization’s 3,500 staff members. He had served as president since 2001.

Mr. McCormick’s tenure at the Nature Conservancy was marked by significant growth, but also controversy. A Senate investigation into the organization’s business practices prompted the charity to restructure its board.

The Moore foundation ranked as the 10th-wealthiest grant maker, with an endowment of $5.8-billion, in The Chronicle’s most-recent survey of American foundations. Mr. Nelson says the foundation will continue to focus on three grant-making priorities: environmental conservation, science, and the Bay Area.

Heinz Endowments

Robert F. Vagt, former president of Davidson College, will take the helm at the Heinz Endowments on January 15. He will succeed Maxwell King, who will retire in February after an eight-year term. The Pittsburgh philanthropy has an endowment of $1.6-billion.

Before his appointment as president of the North Carolina liberal-arts college, Mr. Vagt, an ordained minister, worked as a psychologist and corrections warden early in his career and later shifted to public finance and international oil and gas exploration.

Said Mr. King of his successor: “I know from Bobby’s experience that there will be so much to draw on when he begins his work here.”