Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation

Ellen Kennedy Joins Berkshire Taconic Board

May 2, 2011

SHEFFIELD, MA—Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation announced today that Ellen Kennedy of Williamstown, MA has joined its board of directors. Ms. Kennedy joins 18 other community residents on Berkshire Taconic’s board.

Ellen Kennedy is Dean of Administration and Finance and Chief Financial Officer of Berkshire Community College, Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Prior positions include Director of Development at WFCR – Public Radio for Western New England, Chief Advancement Officer for Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and President of MCLA Foundation, Inc. She has a BS in Business Administration from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (formerly North Adams State College), an MBA from University of Massachusetts Amherst, and a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University. Her community involvements include the Board of Directors of Northern Berkshire United Way and Chair of its Campaign and Allocations Committees, Co-Chair of Williamstown Elementary School Endowment Fund, and Member of North Adams Zoning Board of Appeals. She lives in Williamstown, Massachusetts with her husband, Mark Gold.

“It is an honor to be associated with Berkshire Taconic,” said Kennedy, “I look forward to supporting their leading role in strengthening the array of wonderful organizations serving our community.”

Ms.Kennedy joins Bill Dunlaevy, Edward Hoe, David McCarthy, Virginia Stanton Smith, and John Hoyt Stookey as Berkshire Taconic board members from Berkshire County. Board members also include Sally Berg, Eileen Halloran, Andrew Vickery, Vera Weintraub and M. Scott Wood, Jr. of Columbia County, NY; Sia Arnason, Gloria Callen, Christopher Kennan, Holly Nelson, and Nancy Stahl of northeast Dutchess County, NY; and Ann Goodbody, David Rich and Catherine Tatge of northwest Litchfield County, CT.

“We welcome Ellen to our board and are grateful to be able to have access to her extensive experience in community leadership”, said Virginia Stanton Smith, Berkshire Taconic’s board chair. “She knows our communities, she knows education and she knows about charitable giving. She will be a terrific partner to the foundation.”

Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation builds stronger communities and improves the quality of life for all residents of northwest Litchfield County, CT; Berkshire County, MA; and Columbia County and northeast Dutchess County, NY, acting as an agent for positive change in the region. Since 1987, Berkshire Taconic has managed a growing collection of charitable funds created by individuals, families and businesses. Each year, the foundation distributes over $7 million through grants and scholarships for programs in the arts and education, health and human services and environmental protection, helping thousands of donors achieve their philanthropic goals and hundreds of nonprofits carry on their good work. Berkshire Taconic is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity.

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