Foundation Grants
Community Vital Signs
About Us
Community Foundation's New Leader Focuses on Equitable Economic Mobility
Foundation: Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts, Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, Ford Foundation
When Katie Zobel announced in 2022 that she'd be stepping down as president and CEO of the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts, the agency in Springfield, Mass., was one of the first to draw her attention.
"I looked in the conference-room windows, and I saw the papers lining the walls detailing their strategic-planning process and all their priorities for the next year," Megan Burke, the new president and CEO, tells BusinessWest.
"There were no secrets, they just put it right out there."
Burke, who has more than two decades of experience in nonprofit management, philanthropy, fundraising, and advocacy, was recruited for the position at the same time she was being recruited for it.
She says she admired the organization's transparency," we need to be more like this" and after several rounds of interviews, she was picked to replace Zobel, who'd been with CFWM since 1991.
"I think I bring a lot to the job, but I have a lot to learn from the community about what they think is important and what they believe we should be doing better," Burke tells BusinessWest.
One of her goals is to amass similar forces and create momentum in her new role at CFWM, which serves 69 communities in...
Read the Entire Article
Selected Foundation News
A customized collection of news from foundations from around the Web.
"Every child in every school, everywhere in the country, should have the glasses they need to succeed in school and in life," says Austin Beutner, founder of a nonprofit that provides free eye exams...more
"More than just a space, The Cannon Memorial will be an environment where innovation thrives." That's the vision of the Houston-based co-working space, which opened its 39th location Monday in...more
The Tampa Bay Innovation Center is kicking off its spring accelerator program, and it's got eight startups on its list. Among them: AgWise, which focuses on the climate impact of agriculture's...more
Brazil's environmental minister has a message for the rest of the world: Don't turn your back on the planet. Marina Silva, who is also the country's first lady, has called for a shift away from...more
One of Denver's so-called "innovation zones" is going to be history after the end of the school year. The Northeast Denver Innovation Zone, which had three public schools in it, will dissolve at...more
An 11-acre plot of vacant land in Rome, NY, will soon be transformed into 250 affordable housing units and a community center for veterans and their families. Thanks to a $2.5 million grant from...more
The state has stepped in to help a new ballet company in Syracuse get off the ground. The New York State Council of the Arts has awarded Central New York Ballet a $259,000 grant to help it move...more
More than $3 million in state funding is going to 64 not-for-profit land trusts in New York state to protect water quality, prevent farmland conversion, boost public access to outdoor recreation,...more
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday announced funding for 64 projects that will protect water quality, prevent farmland conversion, boost public access for outdoor recreation, and conserve open...more
Parents in Champaign, Ill., will soon be able to take their kids to the school district's new health center any day of the week. The Illinois Department of Public Health has awarded Promise...more
Social Entrepreneurship
Spotlight
Hong Kong FarmFest 2014: Promoting Social Entrepreneurship
It’s time once again for social enterprises to bring and brandish their products and services at the FarmFest 2014, to be held at the Fa Hui Park in Mong Kok this Lunar New Year shopping season.