Welcoming Four New Program Officers!

A Note from Joy

Greetings,

I’m thrilled to introduce four new ZSR program officers: Ricky Hurtado, John Francis, Jamilla Hawkins and Katherine Baer.

These talented individuals bring unique experiences and skills to their roles:?

• Ricky Hurtado is a leader in education and civic engagement in NC. He has served on Governor Cooper’s DRIVE Task Force on education equity and teacher diversity; as a commissioner of My Future NC, an initiative focused on college attainment; and as a NC House Representative, where he was the only Latino legislator of the 170-member body of the General Assembly. Ricky cofounded LatinxEd , an organization working to advance education equity and Latine leadership, and most recently supported nonprofits nationwide as Senior Consultant at Frontline Solutions. A son of working-class immigrants, Ricky grew up in Sanford, NC, and attended Lee County Public Schools. Ricky will primarily be responsible for our grantmaking dedicated to advancing public education.?
• John Francis' career has spanned nonprofits and philanthropy. Most recently, he served as Vice President of Foundation Relationships at City Year, where he developed and managed partnerships with several national foundations. Before that, he was executive director of a nonprofit and program officer for a statewide foundation. He has consulted for ZSR for more than a decade, often supporting our democracy work, so he is already familiar to many of our grant partners. John grew up in Westfield, NC, and attended Surry County Schools, where both his parents were teachers. John will primarily be responsible for our grantmaking dedicated to strengthening democracy.
• Jamilla Hawkins’ career has spanned state government, nonprofits and philanthropy. Most recently, Jamilla served as Chief of Staff for the NC Pandemic Recovery Office, where she managed the reporting, communications and outreach functions of the office. Before that, she worked at the NC Rural Center to strengthen food systems statewide by promoting and providing resources to food business entrepreneurs, local farmers and community leaders. Jamilla grew up in Riegelwood, NC, and attended Columbus County Schools. She will work across several of our grantmaking strategies.?
• Katherine Baer is a longtime environmental advocate who most recently served as Vice President for Programs at River Network, where she led the organization’s efforts to build an inclusive network and strengthen the capacity of local groups nationwide for safe and affordable drinking water, healthy rivers and climate-resilient communities. Katherine also has worked for American Rivers, Triangle Land Conservancy, Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper and the Center for Progressive Reform. Katherine will be primarily responsible for our grantmaking dedicated to fostering a healthy and sustainable environment.

Ricky and John started at ZSR in April. Jamilla and Katherine will start on June 17.

I hope that many of you will see Ricky, John, Jamilla and Katherine out and about in NC soon. In the meantime, please join us in welcoming them to ZSR!?

All For NC,

Joy Vermillion Heinsohn

Executive Director

Get Inspired

Stories of hope and action from ZSR grantees and partners

• Recidivism Reduction Educational Program Services Inc. (RREPS) launched a hotline to help people recently released from prison readjust to life in their communities. Whether callers need help finding a job, housing or even identification documents, the person on the other end of the hotline can connect them to resources.?
• The Yadkin River and its tributaries supply drinking water to more than 1.1 million people and feed several lakes that North Carolinians use for fishing and recreation. But like many rivers in NC, the Yadkin is currently under pressure from land developers, industrial agriculture expansion, and loosening environmental regulations. Yadkin Riverkeeper is working to generate community support to protect the Yadkin so the river can provide fresh water, fishing and recreational opportunities for generations to come.?
• When pandemic-era grants for childcare providers expire this summer, 1,500 programs in North Carolina could close, and more than 90,000 children may be left without care. National Domestic Workers Alliance rallied childcare providers, educators, families and advocates to call attention to this crisis and highlight the need for funding to stabilize the industry during a time of uncertainty.?
• Since 1877, NC law has stipulated that if someone with a prior felony conviction voted in an election before having their voting rights restored, they could be prosecuted with another felony and face up to two years in prison simply for casting that ballot – even if they did so mistakenly or unknowingly. Now, a federal court has struck down the law, saying that its historical intent and present-day impact was to disenfranchise Black voters. The Southern Coalition for Social Justice and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP represented the NC APRI NC A Philip Randolph Institiute Inc and Action Institute NC as plaintiffs in the case.

What's New with ZSR?

• Grant applications for our State-Level Systemic Change Strategy will open on June 6, and the application deadline will be August 1 at noon.? ?
• Inside Philanthropy's Dawn Wolfe interviewed ZSR Director of Strategy and Learning Sorien Schmidt for a story on how regional funders are confronting challenges to democracy. In the article, Sorien explained ZSR’s approach: “We see this as an ongoing infrastructure that needs to be in place all the time, not just once every four years or every other year. We’re investing multi-year, general operating support to build and maintain this infrastructure and this ecosystem of work."