Luz A. Vega-Marquis,
President and CEO
Luz A. Vega-Marquis has led Marguerite Casey
Foundation since December 2001. As President and CEO,
she manages the Foundation's investment portfolio,
leads its effort to disburse approximately $30
million in grants annually and spearheads the
organization's focus to positively impact families,
youth and children.
Prior to joining the Foundation, Ms. Vega-Marquis
served as executive director of the Community
Technology Foundation of California (CTFC), a
community foundation based in San Francisco.
She was instrumental in developing the strategic
framework of CTFC's grants program as well as
energizing the CTFC vision of bringing information
technology to under-served communities throughout
California. Ms. Vega-Marquis' nonprofit experience
includes four years as vice president and chief
operating officer at the National Economic Development
and Law Center, an organization committed to
providing technical, law and business expertise
to distressed communities nationwide. Her career
also encompasses 17 years at the James Irvine
Foundation, where she served as director of grants
programs, senior program officer in charge of
northern California office and program officer.
A leader in her field, Ms. Vega-Marquis has contributed
widely to the philanthropic community. A founder
of Hispanics in Philanthropy, she has served
on numerous boards including the Council of Foundations,
Northern California Grantmakers, The Women's
Foundation and Katalysis Foundation. She currently
serves on The California Wellness Foundation
board of directors. A graduate of the University
of San Francisco, Ms. Vega-Marquis received a
Bachelor of Arts degree in Modern Languages and
earned a Masters degree in Latin American Studies
from Stanford University.
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Herb Williams, Executive Assistant to the President & CEO/Board of Directors Liaison
Herb Williams joined Marguerite Casey Foundation in January 2006 in a transitional capacity; he jointly served Luz Vega-Marquis, President & CEO of Marguerite Casey Foundation, and Ruth , recently retired President & CEO of Casey Family Programs. In May 2006, Mr. Williams formally joined the Foundation as Executive Assistant to the President & CEO, and Liaison to the Board of Directors. Prior to joining the Foundation, Mr. Williams was Ms. Massinga's Executive Assistant at Casey Family Programs for 16 years. He was involved in the initial setup of Marguerite Casey Foundation and has assisted the Board of Directors since the Foundation's inception. For over 24 years, Mr. Williams has made a career of directly assisting top executives. He is Chapel Organist for St. Mark's Cathedral in Seattle, where he has been an active member for nearly 30 years. Mr. Williams holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Central Washington University, with an academic background encompassing music and library science.
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Kathleen Baca, Director of Communication
Kathleen Baca joined Marguerite Casey Foundation in February, 2006 as Director of Communication. Ms. Baca is responsible for the strategic development and management of communications with the press, grantees and other key stakeholders. She oversees the implementation of the Foundation’s communication plan and message development. Ms. Baca has more than 20 years experience in media, public affairs and public relations. For over ten years, she was a reporter in the San Francisco Bay Area where she covered local communities. Ms. Baca was the head of her own Public Relations firm in San Francisco, held the position of Public Information Officer for the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department under Governor Bill Richardson, and has worked extensively with community groups to develop and execute effective media strategies and campaigns. A native of New Mexico, Ms. Baca holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and English from the University of New Mexico.
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Shanthi Rusho,
Operations Officer
Shanthi Rusho oversees and manages the operations of the Foundation, including human resources, employee training, contracts management, leasing and property management, procurement, events planning, technology services, HR legal services, administration, and travel. Prior to joining Marguerite Casey Foundation, Ms. Rusho worked for 21 years with the United States Agency for International Development’s Sri Lanka mission in various administrative functions, ending her career as Executive Officer.
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Kelly Brown, Director of Programs and Evaluation
Kelly Brown joined Marguerite Casey Foundation in July, 2007 as Director of Programs and Evaluation. Ms. Brown is responsible for overseeing the Foundation ’s core grantmaking and evaluation activities. She has over 20 years of experience in strategic planning, organizational development and the design of strategic investments in communities working for social change. Prior to joining the Foundation, Ms. Brown was a Principal at Viewpoint Consulting where she specialized in the development of investment strategies designed to achieve meaningful and sustainable outcomes for residents of low-income communities. Ms. Brown has served on the boards of the Funding Exchange, Bay Area Blacks in Philanthropy and Leadership Excellence. She was also Director of Marketing and Industry Relations at OpNet Community Ventures, Grants Director at the Vanguard Public Foundation and Director of Administration at TransAfrica/TransAfrica Forum. Ms. Brown holds an MBA from the University of CA, Berkeley, a BA in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Barbara and is currently pursuing a PhD in Sociology from the University of Chicago.
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Alice Ito, Program Officer
Alice Ito joined the Marguerite Casey Foundation
as a Program Officer in November of 2004. Prior
to joining the Foundation, Ms. Ito conducted
education, research, and oral history interviewing
at Densho a nonprofit organization that documents
and educates about principles of democracy and
the experiences of Japanese Americans incarcerated
by the U.S. government, without due process of
law and on the basis of their ancestry, during
World War II. Prior to Densho, she directed the
grant programs at the Social Justice Fund Northwest
(formerly known as ATR, A Territory Resource),
a foundation supporting organizations working
for social, economic, and environmental justice
in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming.
Ms. Ito is a co-founder of nonprofit organizations
including the Nonprofit Assistance Center in
Seattle and the Asian Women’s Shelter in
San Francisco. She has served as a board member
for philanthropic and other nonprofit organizations
including the Family Leadership Fund, National
Network of Grantmakers, and Women’s Foundation
of California. Ms. Ito has provided training
and consulting services to nonprofit's for over
20 years. Born and raised in Washington State,
she is a grandchild of immigrants. She is a graduate
of Stanford University, and attended the program
in Public Policy at Claremont Graduate School
in California.
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Charles Fields, Program Officer
Charles Fields joined Marguerite Casey Foundation
in January of 2006. As Program Officer, Mr. Fields'
responsibilities include identifying, developing
and soliciting grant proposals, conducting site
visits and preparing grant recommendations. Prior
to joining the Foundation, Mr. Fields managed
the West Oakland Initiative, a partnership between
the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and
The San Francisco Foundation. The Initiative’s
focus was on the intersection of public health,
youth development and education in Oakland Unified
School District. Previous to the Initiative,
Mr. Fields completed The San Francisco Foundation
Fellowship where his primary responsibilities
included the evaluation and recommendation of
proposals in affordable housing, economic development
and homeless services. Mr. Fields also worked
as the Social Action and Policy Coordinator with
the National Community Building Network in Oakland,
CA where he planned and coordinated regional
and national policy conferences. Mr. Fields worked
coordinating local welfare reform initiatives,
executing economic development plans and implemented
a city-wide public transportation pilot project
for the City of Cincinnati. He has also conducted
extensive work with Cincinnati’s Freedom
Schools. Mr. Fields completed undergraduate and
graduate school at Xavier University in Cincinnati,
Ohio.
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Cynthia Renfro, Program Officer
Cynthia Renfro joined the Marguerite
Casey Foundation in September of 2003. As Program
Officer, Ms. Renfro's responsibilities include
identifying, developing and soliciting grant
proposals, conducting site visits and preparing
grant recommendations. Prior to joining the Foundation,
Ms. Renfro served as a program officer at the
Beldon Fund. Before joining the Beldon Fund,
she staffed the Turner Foundation in Atlanta,
GA, as a program officer and then program director,
where she helped manage approximately $25 million
in payouts to over 400 environmental organizations
a year. She is currently a member of the National
Network of Grantmakers (NNG) board and co-chaired
the NNG conference committee for 2001. Ms. Renfro
started her nonprofit career working for Ralph
Nader's Essential Information/Multinational Monitor,
advocating for corporate accountability, human
rights and the environment both domestically
and internationally. A graduate of the University
of California at Los Angeles, Ms. Renfro received
a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and spent
one year in the graduate program at the University
of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
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Peter Bloch Garcia, Program Officer
Peter Bloch Garcia joined Marguerite Casey Foundation in December of 2006. As Program Officer, Mr. Bloch Garcia's responsibilities include identifying, developing and soliciting grant proposals, conducting site visits and preparing grant recommendations. Prior to joining the Foundation, Mr. Bloch Garcia served as Associate Program Officer in the research and evaluation department of the education division of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Before entering the philanthropic field, he worked as a secondary-level classroom teacher. Mr. Bloch Garcia helped create and serves on the board of two new nonprofit organizations: the Latino Community Fund of Washington State, where he is president of the board, and CollegeCorps, an overseas internship program for undergraduates with financial need. He is also involved locally with the People of Color in Philanthropy network and the Social Justice Fund Northwest. Mr. Bloch Garcia holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and a Master of Public Administration degree from the Evans School of Public Affairs at the University of Washington.
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Kate Stanke, Events Planner
Kate Stanke joined Marguerite Casey Foundation in March of 2007 as the Events Planner and coordinates the planning of all the Foundation’s national and regional convenings. Prior to joining the Foundation, Ms. Stanke spent the last two years at Chrysalis Events where she planned high-level executive events for Microsoft and other clients. Originally from Minneapolis, she is a graduate of the University of Minnesota, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communications.
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Steve Winter, Public Information Officer
Steve Winter joined Marguerite Casey Foundation in April of 2007. As Public Information Officer, Mr. Winter supports the Foundation’s communications efforts with an emphasis on facilitating grantees in sharing their successes and increasing traffic to the web site. Originally from Phoenix, Mr. Winter has served in a variety of communications and community relations roles for several area nonprofits since adopting Seattle as his home. He received a Master of Arts degree in English from Arizona State University.
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Zaki Abdelhamid, Grants Administrator
Zaki Abdelhamid joined Marguerite Casey Foundation in August 2006 and is a Grant Administrator. An Arab American from Jordan who immigrated to America in 1994, Zaki has traveled around the country as an actor before settling in Seattle where he remains active in the theatre community. He has a Bachelors degree from the University at Albany, and an MFA in classical acting from the University of Delaware.
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Piilani Pang, Administrative Specialist
In this role, Ms. Pang provides a wide range of administrative and communications support to the Director of Programs and Evaluations. She has more than 12 years experience in the non-profit field, including her responsibilities as a Program Director for the Family Independence Initiative in Hawaii. She has spent time with Hawaii Medical Service Association, the American Cancer Society and United Way. She has a Bachelors of Arts degree in Journalism and an MBA, both from the University of Hawaii. Ms. Pang sits on a number of boards, including College Connections Hawaii.
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Vanessa Tanner, Graphic Designer and Web Manger
Vanessa Tanner joined Marguerite Casey Foundation in May 2007 as a Graphic Designer and Web Manger. Prior to returning to the United States for her secondary education, she had lived in several countries on five continents. Ms. Tanner received a Bachelor of Science from Boise State University in Computer Information System and Network and Telecommunications with minors in Marketing and International Business. She comes to Seattle after working for a web advertising agency in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
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Kathleen Roe, Administrative Assistant
Kathleen Roe joined the Marguerite Casey Foundation in May 2007. As Administrative Assistant to the Program and Evaluation team, she facilitates the flow of communication and information between grantees and the Foundation. A Seattle native, Ms. Roe is passionate about nonprofit work and volunteerism. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from the University of Washington.
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Nathan Sorseth, Human Resources Assistant
Nathan also came on board in March and serves as Shanthi Rusho’s assistant in the Foundation office. A recent transplant to Seattle, Nathan is an active member of the local theater and arts communities. Originally from the Portland area, he holds a B. A. from Southern Oregon University and an M.F.A. from the University of Delaware.
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Jennifer Gianni, Finance Manager
Jennifer Gianni joined the Marguerite Casey Foundation in April 2007. As the Foundation’s Financial Manager, she provides direct support to the Chief Financial Officer as well as providing support to all staff relating to Accounting functions, procedures and policies. Originally from Brooklyn, New York, Ms. Gianni settled in Washington in 1996. She holds a Bachelors of Arts degree in Accounting as well as a Masters of Business Administration from Saint Martin’s University.
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