Hispanics in Philanthropy Online

New York, NY (October 27, 2005) - The Association of Black Foundation Executives (ABFE) held a Leadership Summit from October 18 – 21, hosted by the Ford Foundation, for ten inaugural Fellows in its Connecting Leaders Fellowship Program. The fellowship program is a year-long professional training experience designed to strengthen the leadership capacity of foundation staff, donors, and trustees who share a passionate commitment for assisting Black communities through increased philanthropy. The ABFE Summit was comprised of a series of lectures, workshops, and site visits in New York City.

“The ABFE Connecting Leaders Fellowship is the cornerstone of our efforts to build foundation staff and trustee leadership for social reform and more effective philanthropy to improve Black communities,” said Tim Russell, Chairman of the ABFE Board of Directors and Senior Manager, Sara Lee Corporation. Most recent statistics show that only 1.6% of foundation giving is directed to Black communities and that less than 3% of foundation CEOs are Black, Russell said.

Eight African American and two Latino professionals in philanthropy, whose bios are included below, have been selected as the inaugural Fellows. They are employed as staff members of several major philanthropic organizations in Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, Elgin, Ill., New York City, Phoenix, and San Francisco. The program encourages the Fellows to look beyond the traditional image of philanthropy as a source of giving and to provide leadership in expanding philanthropy’s role in promoting systemic change.

The gathering was the first step in a year-long program of professional development, coaching and community-based projects. The launch featured senior leaders in Black philanthropy, including Mr. Emmett Carson, President of The Minneapolis Foundation, and James A. Joseph, the former Ambassador to South Africa. Ambassador Joseph, co-founder of ABFE and former CEO of the Council on Foundations, urged the fellows to not only see themselves as leaders who comfort the afflicted, but also as leaders who “afflict the comforted.”

ABFE 2005-2006 Connecting Leaders Fellowship Program

Fellows Bios

Tonya Allen is a Program Director at The Skillman Foundation. She co-manages the Foundation’s overall grantmaking strategies and annual budget of $21 million and serves on the senior management team to develop and monitor management policy and procedures. Tonya received a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and African American Studies, a Master’s degree in Public Health and a Master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Michigan.

Andrea A. Anderson, Ph.D. is a Research Associate at The Aspen Institute Roundtable on Community Change. In this capacity, Andrea helped develop the Racial Equity Theory of Change Protocol (RETOC), which operationalizes a conceptual work on structural racism and community building. Andrea holds both a Bachelor’s degree in Finance and a Master’s degree in Family and Community Development from the University of Maryland. She also has a Ph.D. in Program Evaluation and Planning from Cornell University.

Susan Taylor Batten is a Senior Associate at The Annie E. Casey Foundation. She staffs the Community Change Initiatives Unit and supports the Foundation’s national, multi-year initiative to strengthen families in ten cities across the country. She is also the facilitator of the RESPECT Forum at The Annie E. Casey Foundation, a foundation-wide internal affinity group that aims to keep issues of race, class, culture and power on the table. Susan holds a Bachelor’s degree in English and Political Science from Fisk University and a Master’s degree in Social Work from Howard University.

Rudy Guglielmo, Jr. is a Program Officer for the Arizona Community Foundation where he is responsible for competitive grant cycles and initiative programs funded by the Foundation’s field of interest and unrestricted grantmaking funds. Board positions include: Arizona Grant Makers Forum 2005 to present; Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture, City of Phoenix, Commissioner 2003 to present; National Association of Latino Arts and Culture from 1994 to 2001; the Arizona/Mexico Commission from 1995 to 2001; and the National Association of Artists’ Organizations from 1989 to 1993. Rudy received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Arizona State University in 1983.

Rahsaan Harris is the Special Assistant in the office of the CEO at The Atlantic Philanthropies. He is the Programme Executive responsible for the Disadvantaged Children & Youth and Ageing grantmaking programs in Bermuda, with additional responsibilities for locating, analyzing and presenting data for the CEO and undertaking research assignments. Currently, Rahsaan is a doctoral candidate at NYU Wagner School of Public Administration. He also has a Master’s degree in Science Education from the Teacher’s College at Columbia University and a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Princeton University.

Obiel Leyva is the Associate Program Officer for the Community Health program area of the San Francisco Foundation, which awards over $65 million per year to nonprofit organizations in the five county Bay Area. For over four years, Obiel has been responsible for conducting the majority of the day-to day responsive grantmaking for Community Health. Obeil received his B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley in 1990 and his Master’s Degree from the University of California at Los Angeles in 1995.

Toya Randall is Director of Elgin Programs at the Grand Victoria Foundation. She works in consultation with the executive director to develop grantmaking strategies in the Elgin community. For the past three years, she has served as the co-chair of Chicago Grantmakers for Effective Organizations. Toya holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Missouri.

Erica Seth is an Associated Black Charities (ABC) donor through an ABC giving circle and through giving charitable to the organization. Erika has also worked in the philanthropic sector for most of her professional career. She currently serves as Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations at McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland. Her prior philanthropy experience includes positions with Associated Black Charities and the Tavis Smiley Foundation. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English and certificate in African Studies from Georgetown University.

Phillip Thomas is a Program Officer for the Woods Fund of Chicago. He is the Woods Funds lead contact in the areas of Education Reform, Immigration Policy, Land Use Planning, and Arts & Culture. He also leads the Southside Community Organizing Capacity Building Initiative, a project aimed at deepening the Fund’s impact in an underserved, predominantly African American portion of the city. Phillip received a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Morehouse College and a Master’s degree in Public Policy Studies from the University of Chicago.

Akilah Watkins is a Program Officer for The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta. She is responsible for the Foundation’s small grants program and the Neighborhood Fund. She manages a $1 million dollar grantmaking portfolio. Akilah has a Bachelor’s degree in Health and Human Services from Empire State College and holds Master’s degrees in both Community Economic Development and Business Education from Southern New Hampshire University Graduate School of Business.

ABFE: The Association of Black Foundation Executives, the Council on Foundations’ first affinity group, has promoted sustainable philanthropy in Black communities and encouraged Black leadership and participation within organized philanthropy since 1971.