Laura Washington: President & Chief Executive Officer
POUGHKEEPSIE, NY – Laura Washington has been selected as President & Chief Executive Officer of Community Foundations of the Hudson Valley (CFHV). In this role, she will lead efforts to expand CFHV’s community impact throughout the Hudson Valley.
Most recently, Washington served as Chief Communications Officer and Vice President for Strategic Partnerships at the New-York Historical Society. Previously, she held a senior leadership role at the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, where she established and led the organization’s inaugural communications function.
CFHV delivers community leadership and strategic philanthropy to inspire and celebrate local charitable giving in the Mid-Hudson Valley region. Partnering with its donors, CFHV addresses current and emerging community needs through effective grantmaking to improve the quality of life for all, and by offering technical assistance to help nonprofits operate more effectively.
A native New Yorker, Washington has close ties to the Hudson Valley where her family resided for several decades. She serves locally on the board of Historic Huguenot Street as Chair of the Education and Programming Committee and has volunteered with multiple nonprofit organizations, including Brooklyn Org’s SPARK Prize selection committee, the New York Regional Selection Committee for the Marshall Scholarship, and has been a review panelist for the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Since its origin as the Area Fund in 1969, CFHV has expanded to include Dutchess, Ulster, and Putnam counties. CFHV currently manages over $100 million in assets and administers nearly 600 charitable funds for individuals and organizations. In 2023, it distributed more than $11.3 million in grants and scholarships. For more information, visit https://communityfoundationshv.org/
