The Northern New Jersey Community Foundation announces the addition of four members to the Board of Trustees. The foundation also named four members to the newly created Environmental Action Advisory Board. The new members were appointed to an initial one-year term on the community foundation’s Board of Trustees.
They join the foundation in celebrating 23 years, as a regional resource, carrying out a mission to improve community life through its work in education, public health, the arts, the environment, civic engagement, and philanthropy. Central to the foundation’s success is fostering collaboration among local governments, school districts, businesses, non-profits, and community groups.
Michael Shannon
“These new members of the foundation’s Board of Trustees and the Environmental Advisory Board bring their expertise and extensive experience working with the nonprofit sector to carry out our mission. They will also guide the foundation in our work and help us address significant issues impacting the region,” said Michael Shannon, President, Northern NJ Community Foundation.
Foundation Appoints New Members to Board of Trustees
These four members of the community were named to the NNJCF’s Board of Trustees
- Ilene Marcus, a financial professional from Woodcliff Lake with over 35 years of experience on the cutting edge of health insurance strategy, population health, analytics, risk management, government compliance and people leadership, was named Treasurer of the NNJCF. Previously, she worked as the Regional Vice President of Financial Operations for Human’s Northeast Region.
- Kenneth D. Bland, Jr., Assistant Vice President of Community Lending for Valley National Bank in Northern New Jersey, is a community banking professional. Bland also holds over eight years of experience in lending and community development. He resides in Edison, New Jersey.
- Christopher Percopo, Director of Grants Information and Management at the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, oversees the lifecycle of Helmsley’s grantmaking. Percopo also works with other nonprofits to develop key performance indicators for social service programs, developing and executing strategic plans, and assisting with drafting bylaws and governance for board development. He resides in Hoboken, New Jersey.
- Melissa Reynolds, Director, Legal Counsel, Global Quality & Operations at Stryker, works as a corporate attorney. She specializes in commercial transactions and healthcare fraud and abuse risk. Reynolds also brings a 15-year career in the healthcare industry. She resides in Morris County, New Jersey.
In addition, John Devol, a founding trustee, became Trustee Emeritus. Devol, who is also a professional musician and licensed educator, founded Arts Horizons in 1978. During that time, the nonprofit organization served over eight million children in ten states. Devol led Arts Horizons as its first executive director through 2010.
Environmental Action Advisory Board
The NNJCF’s Environmental Advisory Board members serve as lead technical advisors. They also advise about designing and implementing research and programs to address Climate Action based upon science. The following educators, representing institutions of higher education from New Jersey, joined the advisory board:
- Serpil Guran, Director of EcoComplex “Clean Energy Innovation Center at Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey;
- Wolfram Hoefer, Associate Professor at Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey Department of Landscape Architecture and Director of the Rutgers Center for Urban Environmental Sustainability (CUES);
- Marion McClary, Chair of the Department of Biological Sciences at Fairleigh Dickinson University and Professor of Biology; and
- Amy Tuininga, Director of Montclair State University’s PSEG Institute for Sustainability Studies.
For further information about the NNJCF, call 201-568-5608. Send inquiries to nnjcf@nnjcf.org.
