BENTONVILLE — Stephanie Cornell will be the next executive director of the Walton Family Foundation, an official said Thursday.
Cornell replaces Caryl Stern as executive director.
Cornell served as managing director of the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation. She also cofounded three social ventures: Strategic Grant Partners, Project Healthy Children (now Sanku) and the Maranyundo Initiative, said Annie Proietti, board chairwoman of the Walton Family Foundation, in an announcement on the foundation website.
The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation was founded on a belief in the power of innovation and the conviction that with bold support, passionate individuals with great ideas can change the world, according to its website.
Strategic Grant Partners has completed its last round of grant-making, according to its website. It’s donated more than $88 million since 2002 to support positive change for children and families in Massachusetts, according to the website.
Sanku’s goal is to end malnutrition in Africa, its website states.
The Maranyundo Initiative supports access to academic excellence for girls in Rwanda, according to its website.
“Stephanie’s leadership will help continue the vision that inspired my grandparents, Sam and Helen Walton, when they started the foundation,” Proietti said. “They believed in the limitless potential of people with access to opportunity and encouragement. Their vision has guided the foundation for more than three decades while adapting to today’s world.”
Cornell brings extensive experience with an array of social impact organizations, Proietti said.
“Her perspective will help us continue evolving and find new ways to unlock opportunity for people and communities,” Proietti said.
“She has a background in leading teams and driving for measurable outcomes,” Proietti said. “This combination provides the leadership necessary as the foundation works with grantees and communities to pursue ambitious goals.”
Cornell holds a bachelor’s degree in English and environmental studies from Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio, a master’s in business administration from Stanford University in Stanford, Calif., and was a fellow with Harvard’s Advanced Leadership Initiative. She also serves on the advisory boards of The Elevate Prize and One8 Foundation.
Founded by Joseph Deitch in 2019, the Elevate Prize Foundation is a global nonprofit group that empowers social entrepreneurs and activists by providing them resources to amplify their impact, according to its website.
The One8 is a venture philanthropy and a pro bono consultancy working with grantee partners to create social change, according to its website.
For more than three decades, the Walton Family Foundation has focused on three core objectives: improving education; protecting rivers, oceans and the communities they support; and advancing its home region of Northwest Arkansas and the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta, according to its website.
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