Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors Names CFO and Adds to Advisory Team

Significant expansion reflects increased interest in effective giving

New York, NY, June 22 2004 — Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors today announced that it had named Daniel Stubbs as Chief Financial Officer, Jessica Chao as Senior Philanthropy Advisor and Walter Sweet as Philanthropy Advisor. The move significantly expands the organization and will enable it to broaden its activities at a time when there is increased interest in global and missiondriven giving among donors.

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors is an independent, nonprofit service that develops and manages giving programs for individuals, families, foundations and trusts. Over the past decade, it has advised on and managed more than $850 million in giving in more than 40 countries.

“Dan, Jessica and Walter each bring exceptional experience that will enhance many areas of our organization, continue our commitment to thoughtful, effective giving, expand our reach into emerging donor communities, and serve the philanthropic needs of our growing client base,” said Melissa A. Berman, President and CEO of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. “The skills and talents each has acquired in their outstanding professional careers complement the broad and deep expertise of our current team.”

Dan Stubbs joins Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors after a long career in the public, private and nonprofit sectors. Most recently, as Director of External Reporting in Prudential Financial’s Controllers Department, Mr. Stubbs reported on over $14 billion in assets. During his years at Prudential, he also served as Director in the Policyowner Relations Division, and helped re-engineer the financial processes that served as the foundation for the successful Prudential Financial, Inc. IPO in December 2001.

Prior to joining Prudential, Mr. Stubbs served in a Board of Regents appointment as the Executive Secretary (Director) of the New York State Board for Public Accountancy, formulating laws, rules and regulations governing the practice of public accounting in New York State. He held senior positions at Bellcore, including Chief Financial Officer of its Network Systems division and Controller of its corporate computing facilities. As Corporate Controller of the New York State Urban Development Corporation, Mr. Stubbs managed financial activities associated with major development projects including the Javits Convention Center and the Syracuse University Carrier Dome Stadium.

Mr. Stubbs serves on the board for the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants and chairs the Career Opportunities in the Accounting Profession program Advisory Board, a one-week program held each summer to expose tri-state area, inner city students to careers in finance. He is a member of the adjunct faculties of Long Island University and Rutgers University, and is Treasurer of the Prince Hall Urban Renewal Corporation, which is dedicated to providing affordable housing to low-income and senior citizens in Newark, New Jersey. Also active in the American Institute of CPAs, New Jersey Society of CPAs and the National Association of Black Accountants, Mr. Stubbs holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Business Administration from Pace University.

Jessica Chao, a noted expert in foundation and program management and grantmaking, brings considerable experience from her work as an independent consultant to nonprofits, foundations and philanthropies nationwide; as a senior executive of several of the nation’s leading nonprofits; and through her work with donors in the Asian, Latino and African-American communities.

Most recently, she launched the Coalition for New Philanthropy, an initiative to strengthen philanthropy in communities of color, including African-American, Asian American and Hispanic American. She was formerly the vice president of the Wallace-Reader’s Digest Funds, where she designed and developed one of the largest private sector arts and cultural programs in the country, which received the President’s Medal of Arts. She has been a member of the Advisory Committees of the National Center for Family Philanthropy; the Ford Foundation’s Social Justice Initiative; and the Smithsonian Asian American Initiative. Her board memberships have included the New York Area Regional Grantmakers; Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy and the Ridgewood Arts Council. Ms. Chao frequently writes and addresses conference and seminar audiences on numerous philanthropy-related topics, notably on the traditions and preferences of the emerging multi-cultural donor. She has advised many leading foundations, including the Ford, Kellogg Packard, Rockefeller, Hasbro, Twenty-First Century, Asia and Gill Foundations. Earlier in her career, she was a company and faculty member of the Martha Graham Dance Company. She holds a B.A. and M.A. from Columbia University.

Walter Sweet has been a program officer at the New York Community Trust, the nation’s largest community foundation. In his capacity as Budget and Special Projects Officer for The New York Community Trust, Mr. Sweet developed a $30 million annual discretionary grants budget; conducted special project grantmaking; recommended fund sources for grants; and monitored and evaluated programmatic activities. Further, he served as the emergency grants program officer for the September 11th Fund, a joint fund of The New York Community Trust and The United Way of New York City. Most recently, as Vice President of the family-owned Sweet Analysis Services, he managed contractual agreements for international joint ventures and new business development, including with the U. S. Federal government and military operations. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in American History from Columbia University.

About Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors is an independent, nonprofit service that develops and manages effective giving programs. Headquartered in New York City, it traces its antecedents to John D. Rockefeller, Sr., who in 1891 began to professionally manage philanthropy “as if it were a business.” He set the style of family giving by specifying that grants would be used “for the well-being of people throughout the world.” In the past decade, Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors has advised on and managed more than $850 million in annual giving in more than 40countries. Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors also includes The Philanthropic Collaborative, a donor-advised fund for international giving and special projects.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 22nd, 2004 at 1:53 pm.