Join us this semester for our virtual speaker series featuring exciting and innovative nonprofit and social impact leaders. Speakers will share their diverse perspectives on a range of nonprofit, philanthropic and civic sector challenges and important leadership lessons. Next in our speaker series is Tonia Wellons, who will chat with us about nonprofit collaboration, advancing racial equity through a crisis, fundraising during COVID-19, and her leadership journey (among many other topics!).
Tonia is the President & CEO of the Greater Washington Community Foundation, the largest public foundation in the Greater Washington region. The Community Foundation's mission is to Build Thriving Communities by galvanizing philanthropy and investing locally to maximize community impact. Their vision is for a more equitable, just, and thriving Greater Washington for all, and especially for those who have been systematically marginalized in our region.
Leading an organization with a staff of 30, $335 million in assets under management, and $60 million in annual grants, Tonia oversees the day-to-day business of the organization, serves as chief development officer, and works with the Board of Trustees and staff to determine the strategic priorities of The Community Foundation. Tonia has successfully launched and led programmatic and development efforts for several key initiatives at The Community Foundation, including the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund, VoicesDMV, the Resilience Fund, and the Partnership to End Homelessness. She also has purview over all grantmaking, community engagement, and strategic partnerships.
Tonia was recently named a Hero of the Crisis by Washingtonian Magazine, 2020 Nonprofit Leader of the Year by the Washington Business Journal, and the 2020 Philanthropist of the Year by the AFP DC chapter.
More about the series
Each conversation will begin at 12pm and start with a 20-30 minute interview, which will be recorded (for UMD student professional development and coursework). When the interview concludes, the conversation will open up for you to interact with the guest and ask questions. After signing up, you will receive a calendar invitation with a link to the video conference.