Westside Future Fund (WFF) is proud to announce the addition of two new members to its board of directors: Morehouse School of Medicine’s President and Dean, Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice, and Kaiser Permanente of Georgia’s Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs, Beverly Thomas.

The new members were elected during the organization’s August board meeting.

The now 21-member board includes leaders from across the city’s public, private and nonprofit sectors, representing the fields of education, real estate, government, philanthropy, community development, business, sports, arts and culture and now medicine and health coverage and care.

The board works closely with Westside Future Fund’s executive director, John Ahmann, and staff on the execution of strategies around four areas of impact – cradle-to-career education; health and wellness; mixed-income communities and safety and security – with resident and community retention at its core.

Dr. Montgomery Rice and Ms. Thomas will help guide the further development and execution of Westside Future Fund’s community health and wellness impact strategy, which will build on the work of the Westside Health Collaborative, sponsored by the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation.

MEET THE NEW DIRECTORS

• Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice, President and Dean, Morehouse School of Medicine: As the sixth president of Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) and the first woman to lead the free-standing medical institution, Dr. Montgomery Rice brings to the WFF board a valuable combination of experience at the highest levels of patient care and medical research, as well as organizational management and public health policy.  Prior to joining MSM, Dr. Montgomery Rice held faculty positions and leadership roles at various health centers, including academic health centers. Most notably, she was the founding director of the Center for Women’s Health Research at Meharry Medical College, one of the nation’s first research centers devoted to studying diseases that disproportionately impact women of color. A Georgia native, Montgomery Rice holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the Georgia Institute of Technology, a medical degree from Harvard Medical School and an honorary degree from the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Emory University School of Medicine and her fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Hutzel Hospital.
  Click here to read Dr. Montgomery Rice’s full bio. 

 

• Beverly Thomas, Vice President of Public Affairs, Kaiser Permanente of Georgia:  Beverly D. Thomas is vice president of communications and public affairs for Kaiser Permanente of Georgia. She has been with the organization for 24 years and has executive responsibility for public, media and community relations, local government relations, corporate communications and issues/crisis management. She also oversees a $53 million community benefit portfolio. Prior to joining Kaiser Permanente, she was vice president of public and community relations for the Grady Health System, which included the largest tertiary hospital in Georgia, the area’s only level one trauma center, a pediatric hospital, a long-term care facility and a network of free-standing outpatient clinics. Prior to her career in public relations, she was a reporter for the Atlanta Journal and the Columbus Enquirer. A native of Columbus, Georgia, Beverly holds a Masters degree in public administration/public policy and a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism, both from the University of Georgia. She completed the Kaiser Permanente’s executive leadership program at Harvard Business School and the Kaiser Permanente Executive Program with Stanford University professors.
  Click here to read Ms. Thomas’ full bio.

See below for a full list of WFF’s board of directors.

Westside Future Fund Board of Directors:

RICHARD DUGAS
CHAIRMAN
Retired Chairman
PulteGroup, Inc.

DR. BEVERLY TATUM
VICE CHAIRWOMAN
President
Spelman College

LIZ BLAKE
Retired General Counsel
Habitat for Humanity International

PENNY MCPHEE
President
The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation

MICHAEL JULIAN BOND
Councilman, Post 1 At-Large
City of Atlanta

RODNEY BULLARD
VP of Community Affairs & Executive Director
Chick-fil-A Foundation

MARK CHANCY
Vice Chairman & Co-COO
SunTrust, Inc.

DAN HALPERN
President & CEO
Jackmont Hospitality, Inc.

VIRGINIA HEPNER
Retired President & CEO
Woodruff Arts Center

TOMMY HOLDER
Chairman & CEO
Holder Construction

DR. VALERIE MONTGOMERY RICE
President and Dean
Morehouse School of Medicine

PETER MUNIZ
VP & Deputy General Counsel
The Home Depot Foundation

HELEN PRICE
Vice President of Global Community Affairs
The Coca-Cola Foundation

SYLVIA RUSSELL
Retired President
AT&T Georgia

DAVE STOCKERT
Retired President & CEO
Post Properties

BEVERLY THOMAS
Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs
Kaiser Permanente of Georgia

IVORY LEE YOUNG
Councilman, District 3
City of Atlanta

RICHARD COX (Ex-Officio)
Chief Operating Officer
City of Atlanta

DURIYA FAROOQUI (Ex-Officio)
Executive Director
Atlanta Committee for Progress

FRANK FERNANDEZ (Ex-Officio)
Vice President of Community Development
The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation

DR. ELOISA KLEMENTICH (Ex-Officio)
CEO
Invest Atlanta