Michael Bailin served as President and CEO of the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation from 1996 to 2005. For the 17 years before that he was a founder, former president and chief executive officer of Public/Private Ventures (P/PV), a nationally recognized nonprofit organization dedicated to improving opportunities for young people in poor communities. Prior to launching P/PV in 1977, Mike worked as a consultant to the Ford Foundation, and before that he served as the deputy director and counsel to the South Street Seaport Museum in New York City. Mike has also practiced law and taught at both Dartmouth and Franconia colleges in New Hampshire. Over the years he has helped to build, has managed, or has served as a board member or advisor to numerous nonprofit organizations. Currently he serves on the boards of Civic Ventures (Vice Chair), the International Trachoma Initiative (Executive Committee), and the William Penn Foundation (Executive Committee); on the President’s Leadership Advisory Council of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America; and on the Advisory Council of the Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship. He spent spring semester of 2006 as a Visiting Professor of the Practice of Foundation Strategy in the Terry Sanford Institute of Public Policy at Duke University.

As CEO of Stupski Foundation, located in the San Francisco Bay-Area, Alexa is responsible for the Foundation’s overall performance and effectiveness. The Foundation’s mission is to create greater life options for students in our nation’s urban school systems by transforming the district systems and leaders responsible for their success.

Alexa’s career has centered on building high performing nonprofit organizations that are better equipped to deliver greater social impact. She served as CEO of the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation, directing its program development and growth over more than a decade. During her tenure, the foundation's operating program in learning disabilities grew to serve a national audience of millions, becoming the most trusted resource in the country for families struggling with this issue. She also directed initiative-based grant making programs in homelessness, poverty prevention and substance abuse, winning national recognition for the foundation's outstanding contributions, particularly in building the capacity of local nonprofits. Alexa received her B.A. from University of California at Berkeley and an M.A. in Nonprofit Management from University of San Francisco. She serves on the boards of Northern California Grantmakers and New Door Ventures.

Joel is a professor of Law and Public Policy Studies and the Director of the Samuel and Ronnie Heyman Center for Ethics, Public Policy, and the Professions at the Terry Sanford Institute of Public Policy at Duke University. Joel served as head of the U.S. Program Staff of The Atlantic Philanthropies from 1993 to 2001. He joined the Duke faculty in 1971, was the founding director of what is now The Terry Sanford Institute of Public Policy, and has served the university as vice president, senior vice president and first senior vice president, as well as Chairman of the Capital Campaign for the Arts and Sciences and Engineering. He has authored and edited numerous books and articles reflecting his long-standing interest in ethics, public policy and nonprofit organizations, the most recent of which is The Foundation: A Great American Secret—How Private Wealth is Changing the World, which was published in January, 2007 by Public Affairs Press and is now in its fifth printing. Joel currently serves as director of the Duke Foundation Research Program, chair of the Board of Trustees of the Urban Institute, and trustee of several other nonprofit and for-profit organizations, including the Partnership for Public Service. He also is chair of the Visiting Committee of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Phil is dedicated to increasing the effectiveness and lasting success of charities and start-ups. Phil has been actively engaged in CEP’s development since 2001 and was instrumental in the establishment of the organization and design of its initial research efforts. He also co-authored CEP's case study of performance assessment at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Phil was appointed Commissioner of Massachusetts Division of Energy Resources, July 2007. He is a geologist (B.S. from University of New Hampshire and M.S. in Economic Geology from the University of Arizona) and management professional (M.B.A. from Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth) with 30 years experience in the energy industry. Phil serves as board member, board executive committee member and treasurer of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative as well as a board member of the Commonwealth’s Energy Facilities Siting Board. Prior to joining DOER, Phil served as board member and Senior Vice President at EnerNOC, a start-up company providing electricity demand-management services to businesses, institutions, utilities, and grid operators to obtain savings for businesses and institutions and relieve stress on the electric system. He was also a Senior Partner, and leader of Mercer Management Consulting’s global energy utilities practice.

Stephen is President of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund (RBF). Prior to joining the RBF in 2001, Stephen was Founding President of Demos: A Network for Ideas & Action, a new public policy research and advocacy organization working to enhance the vitality of American democracy and promote more broadly shared prosperity. He has also served as Executive Vice President of the EastWest Institute (EWI), where he worked on issues of economic reform, civil society development, and international security. Based in Prague, Czech Republic, from 1990 through 1997, Stephen worked extensively throughout Central and Eastern Europe and the New Independent States. Prior to joining the EastWest Institute, he developed an extensive track record as a policy analyst and cabinet official in the State of Connecticut, where he served as Commissioner of the Department of Economic Development and Commissioner of the Department of Income Maintenance (Social Welfare). Stephen has published articles in The International Herald Tribune, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal Europe and several books and journals.

Jim. Knickman is the first President and Chief Executive Officer of NYSHealth. Prior to joining the Foundation, Dr. Knickman was Vice President of Research and Evaluation at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) in Princeton, New Jersey. Dr. Knickman and his staff took lead roles in developing research initiatives and conducting internal analyses related to RWJF’s grantmaking priorities. Throughout his 14-year tenure at RWJF, Dr. Knickman led grantmaking teams in three areas: clinical care for the chronically ill, long term care services, and population health.
Between 1976 and 1992, Dr. Knickman served on the faculty of New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, served on a wide range of advisory boards, and published extensive research on issues related to improving services for homeless families, frail elders, and individuals with HIV. Dr. Knickman is the co-author of a widely used textbook on health policy and management.
Dr. Knickman serves as chairman of the Robert Wood Johnson Health System in New Brunswick, New Jersey. He is a past chair of the New Jersey Department of Health’s Cardiac Health Advisory Council, a past board member of AcademyHealth in Washington, D.C., and a past board member of the New York Catholic Health Care System. Currently, he is a member of the editorial boards of The Milbank Quarterly and Inquiry.

Pat is Vice President, Finance & Administration at The F.B. Heron Foundation, a private, grantmaking institution supporting organizations with a track record of building wealth within low-income communities. In this role, she is responsible for the finance, administration, human resources, customer service, compliance, program infrastructure, communications, operations, technology, and facilities management. Prior to joining the Foundation, Pat served in executive roles in operations, finance, and marketing at Citibank and American Express as well as at several entrepreneurial ventures. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Center for Urban Community Services, breaking the cycle of homelessness by providing supportive housing and services for people with mental illness and other special needs. She is a member of the Financial Women’s Association and Foundation Financial Officers Group and is chair of the New York Foundation Financial Managers Group. Pat serves on the Committee for Members and Directors for the New York Regional Association of Grantmakers. She also volunteers as a mentor to college students.

Kathryn E. Merchant is President/CEO of The Greater Cincinnati Foundation. Prior to joining the Foundation in 1997, Kathy was the director of The Pew Charitable Trusts’ Neighborhood Preservation Initiative and a partner in the New Haven-based consulting firm Holt, Wexler & Merchant. She has also served as the director of planning for the United Way of Greater New Haven and as planner/grants manager for the South Central Connecticut Area Agency on Aging, as well as adjunct faculty at Southern Connecticut State University and University of New Haven. Kathy has served in leadership positions on a number of nonprofit boards of directors, including the SC Ministry Foundation, Ohio Grantmakers Forum, Saint Raphael Healthcare System, Saint Raphael Foundation, United Way of Greater New Haven and United Way of Connecticut. She is a member of the Cincinnatus Association and graduate of Leadership Cincinnati Class XXI. In addition to CEP, current board service includes GivingNet (formerly Community Foundations of America; chairman 2003-06), College of Mt. St. Joseph, the National Center for Arts and Technology, and the Metropolitan Club (chairman 2004). Kathy served on the board of the Council on Foundations 2001-07 and held numerous leadership positions including vice chairman 2006-07. She will chair the Council’s 2009 Annual Conference in Atlanta. In 2005, she received a Career Women of Achievement Award from the YWCA of Greater Cincinnati, and in 2006 received the Ohio Philanthropy Award from the Ohio Grantmakers Forum.

Ricardo is an independent consultant to philanthropies and nonprofits and is former President of the Woods Fund of Chicago. Prior to his presidency at the Woods Fund, Ricardo was Director of Program Evaluation for the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Ricardo has also served as senior vice president of planning and resource management for the United Way of Massachusetts Bay in Boston, deputy associate commissioner of the Department of Social Services for Massachusetts, and senior analyst at ABT Associates, where he worked on research projects that helped to inform national policy in areas such as day care regulations and housing development in urban areas. He has also served as director for Neighborhood Housing and Development for the Boston Redevelopment Authority, executive director of Roxbury Multi-service Center, associate professor of research and evaluation at Atlanta University, and director of the Martin Luther King Center at Boston University. He believes that the logic and practice of program evaluation can and should be made more useful and practical to grantors and grantees alike and has written, lectured, and consulted much on this subject.

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