- The Foundation's Board of Trustees chairperson Francisco Cigarroa announced in a statement Monday.
- According to Cigarroa, Walker will, however, continue to steer the organisation as they find his successor.
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Ford Foundation president Darren Walker is set to step down from his role by the end of 2025.
The Foundation's Board of Trustees chairperson Francisco Cigarroa announced in a statement Monday.
According to Cigarroa, Walker will, however, continue to steer the organisation as they find his successor.
“I am incredibly humbled and grateful to have had the opportunity and privilege to serve the Ford Foundation over these past 11 years,” Walker said.
The Board is set to oversee the presidential leadership transition process.
A search committee composed of trustees Francisco Cigarroa, Ursula Burns, Laurene Powell Jobs, Tom Kempner, Lourdes Lopez, Paula Moreno, and Ai-Jen Poo will assist the board with the search process, Cigarroa stated.
"The board is confident that Darren will continue to work with vibrant energy until his last second as president of the Ford Foundation,” he said.
“Identifying a successor who can build on Darren’s legacy will be no small task, but it’s the most important responsibility of a governing board," he added.
"We are confident that we will find the right leader who will work with our talented team as we look to this next chapter in our mission to fight inequality and advance social justice."
Walker is the 10th president to lead the organisation.
Before joining the Ford Foundation, Walker was vice president at the Rockefeller Foundation and COO of Harlem's Abyssinian Development Corporation.
He assumed his leadership role after overseeing grantmaking across a range of programs as vice president.
Walker is credited with conceiving this grantmaking in revolutionary ways.
Under his leadership, Ford established new programs like Tech and Society to build out the field of public interest technology and Ford’s first-ever program for disability rights.
He spearheaded the strategy to provide sustained, multi-year grants and organizational support for grantees, influencing many peer foundations to adopt funding approaches through efforts like Ford’s $1 billion BUILD initiative and activated Ford’s endowment to invest for impact with its $1 billion Mission Investments program.