Moves in Philanthropy: Who Will Lead Atlanta Philanthropy Next? Community Foundation Launches National CEO Search
The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta is preparing for a new chapter as it begins the search for its next president and CEO.
Frank Fernandez, outgoing CEO, Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta (Photo: Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta)
The transition follows the announcement that Frank Fernandez will step down in August after six years of leading one of the region’s most influential philanthropic institutions. Fernandez will become president and CEO of Reinvestment Fund, a Philadelphia-based community development financial institution, in September.
Fernandez joined the Foundation in 2020, at a moment when metro Atlanta was facing the combined pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic uncertainty and a renewed call for racial equity. During his tenure, the Foundation distributed millions of dollars to nonprofits serving residents in crisis and made a major commitment to expanding affordable housing across the region.
The Foundation is now looking for a leader who can build on that momentum while bringing their own vision, relationships and understanding of Atlanta’s communities.
BoardWalk Consulting Group, an Atlanta-based executive search firm, is leading the national search. The ideal candidate will need more than strong management experience. They will be expected to listen closely, earn trust and bring donors, nonprofit leaders, businesses and community members together around shared priorities.
For 75 years, the Community Foundation has helped people turn generosity into meaningful local impact. Its work touches housing, education, economic mobility, neighborhood development and nonprofit sustainability.
The next CEO will inherit significant resources, but also significant responsibility. Atlanta is growing quickly, yet many residents continue to face displacement, financial instability and unequal access to opportunity.
Virginia Hepner named Interim CEO, Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta with Julia Houston, the Foundation’s Board Chair (Photo: Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta)
In the meantime, while conducting the search, Atlanta civic and business leader Virginia Hepner will serve as interim president and CEO, helping provide stability and continuity for the Foundation’s staff, donors and community partners. Hepner brings decades of leadership experience in both the corporate and nonprofit sectors, including serving as president and CEO of the Woodruff Arts Center and spending 25 years in corporate finance with Wachovia Bank and its predecessor institutions. She has also been closely connected to the Community Foundation as a former board member and current service on its housing and GoATL committees, giving her familiarity with the organization’s work and its role across the region.
For Atlanta’s philanthropic community, the selection represents more than an executive appointment. The Foundation’s next CEO will help determine how substantial charitable resources are mobilized to address the region’s growth, inequities and most urgent community needs.