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It is with enormous respect, gratitude and pride that we announce that our very own, inimitable Cedric Brown has been selected to receive a national honor.  He has been chosen by the Association of Black Foundation Executives (ABFE) as the 2010 recipient of the Emerging Leader in Philanthropy Award.

Cedric is being celebrated as an outstanding individual whose innovative leadership promotes philanthropy as a means of social change in Black communities and advances ABFE’s mission.  His award will be officially presented at the Council on Foundations annual meeting in April in Denver.

Cedric worked as the head of the education programs at the Level Playing Field Institute for five years before moving over three years ago to head the Mitchell Kapor Foundation.  It has been a distinct pleasure, honor and learning experience to work with Cedric for these past eight years.

Cedric is building an innovative approach to philanthropy at the Foundation, one which reflects our shared commitment to make the world a fairer place and stewards philanthropic efforts that focus on African American  communities. Please join us in congratulating him on his well-deserved recognition.

Mitch & Freada

We are extremely encouraged about the prospect of an Obama administration in which the target issues of the Mitchell Kapor Foundation — education, environment, and civic engagement — are well-aligned with the winds of change now blowing across the country.  Our lens on these issues — the focus on low income communities of color — also resonates with the inclusive message of the Obama campaign.  Indeed, these groups gave him his margin of victory in many states.

Of particular note is the campaign’s promise to partner with non-profits and social entrepreneurs to amplify government efforts to improve collective-well-being.  We look forward to convening the civic and voter engagement groups we funded to exchange lessons and help us chart our course going forward.  In addition, a joint project of the Level Playing Field Institute (www.lpfi.org) and MKF is to canvas programs focusing on STEM (science, technology, education and math) education for low income students of color so as to promote collaboration and identify effective models.  Emerging from our economic crisis depends in part on U.S. innovation.

As President-elect Obama says: Together, we can bring about the change we need.