Our Team
GHR Foundation leadership is committed to creating change with our partners around the world in the areas of global development, education and health.
GHR Foundation leadership is committed to creating change with our partners around the world in the areas of global development, education and health.
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Amy Goldman
Chief Executive Officer & Chair Amy Goldman is CEO and Chair of GHR Foundation, a philanthropy serving people and their ideas for transformational change in lives around the world. Amy steers the foundation’s direction with optimism and a background in diplomacy and social investment that has inspired new approaches to philanthropy. Under her leadership, GHR has doubled its assets and staff as the organization launched a new effort to build bridges across ideas, sectors and people; elevated powerful movements of faith and inter-faith actors for sustainable development; implemented systems change strategies across public, private and faith sectors to keep children in families; and unlocked significant funding from industry and government to prevent Alzheimer’s Disease. Amy serves on the Georgetown University board of directors, the Georgetown University Walsh School of Foreign Service board of advisors, Mayo Clinic leadership council and is a trustee and vice chair of the board for the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Amy previously served as a lead consultant for Washington D.C.-based International Trade Services, where she focused on trade negotiations and investment strategies. She holds a master’s degree in political science from the University of California at Berkeley, a master's degree in law and diplomacy from Tufts University Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, and bachelor's degree in foreign service from Georgetown University. |
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Suzanne Flannigan
Chief Financial Officer Suzanne Flannigan is the chief financial officer of GHR Foundation. She previously served Adler Management, L.L.C., as chief financial officer and vice president, and as controller. Suzanne has served Opus Group companies in various capacities since 1998. Before joining Adler, she served Opus Corporation as an enterprise resource planning implementation manager. She previously served Opus South Corporation as controller. She began her career in the audit department of Arthur Andersen. Suzanne is a certified public accountant and earned master’s and bachelor’s degrees in accounting from the University of South Florida. |
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Kate Seng
Vice President & Director, Education Kate Seng oversees GHR’s higher education program, which promotes innovative, values-based Catholic education that creates a positive transformation in individuals, communities and the world. Prior to joining GHR Foundation, Kate served as consultant for the Minnesota Community Foundation, the Saint Paul Foundation, Jay and Rose Phillips Family Foundation and others. She was a senior manager at the Greater Twin Cities United Way, where she developed and managed community-wide initiatives focused on affordable housing, workforce development and anti-racism efforts. Seng was the district director for Minnesota’s Congressman Bruce Vento, where she directed the Congressman’s Minnesota efforts. Kate earned a master's degree in public affairs from the Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota and a bachelor's degree in political science from St. Catherine University. |
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Manisha Bharti
Chief of Strategy and Programs Manisha Bharti is GHR Foundation’s chief of strategy and programs, a new role that she filled in early 2017. As a member of GHR’s management team, she oversees the evolution and implementation of each of the Foundation’s program strategies. Manisha also oversees efforts to track, analyze and measure results and knowledge emerging from GHR’s grant-making and also leads on several critical foundation partnerships. Manisha was previously chief strategy officer of FHI 360, a leading global development implementation organization. She was a member of the executive leadership team and oversaw the corporate strategy, partnerships, communications and business development functions. Prior to her 11-year tenure at FHI 360, Manisha served a number of foundations, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation and the Francois-Xavier Bagnoud Foundation, in addition to working at McKinsey & Company, the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS and the Canadian Government. Manisha earned two masters’ degrees in business administration and public health from Johns Hopkins University and completed an interdisciplinary undergraduate degree at Harvard University in social studies. |
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Jason Matz
Chief Investment Officer Jason serves GHR Foundation as chief investment officer. He is responsible for developing and implementing an investment strategy that is integrated with and supportive of GHR’s design-build approach to philanthropy in the areas of global development, education and health. Prior to joining GHR, Jason served for a dozen years as Carleton College’s first chief investment officer. At Carleton, Jason was charged with building an investment and operations team, developing and implementing a new asset allocation framework, and partnering with high quality investment managers to develop the portfolio. He worked closely with Carleton’s investment committee to leverage their investment and organizational expertise. Jason was recognized for his work at Carleton in 2015 when Institutional Investor magazine named him endowment manager of the year for smaller institutions. Prior to joining Carleton, Jason was the director of global equity research at investment consulting firm Jeffrey Slocum & Associates, Inc. where he worked with many different types of clients to develop their equity portfolios. Previously, Jason was an investment analyst at the Minnesota State Board of Investment where he managed the fixed income and equity portfolios, respectively. Jason currently sits on the Investment Committees at Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota and Benilde-St. Margaret’s, where he is also a board member. Jason is a past board member and treasurer of Wilderness Inquiry. Jason earned a master’s degree in finance from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota and a bachelor’s degree in finance from Boston University. |
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Fred Miller
Chief Operating Officer Fred Miller serves as chief operating officer of GHR Foundation. In this role, he leads strategic planning for the Foundation and manages its health program, which focuses on curbing the impact of Alzheimer’s disease by investing in prevention research and therapies. Fred is a director emeritus of McKinsey & Company, having served the company for more than 27 years. He launched McKinsey’s Minneapolis office and spent the past decade as a leader in the firm’s healthcare practice, where he helped guide business strategy, new product development and commercial operations for Fortune 500 healthcare companies. Miller has experience leading corporate strategies with a focus on growth and innovation. Fred earned his master's degree in business administration from the University of Chicago, where he was a Kemper Fellow. He received his bachelor’s degree in mathematics and economics summa cum laude from DePauw University where he was a National Merit Scholar. |
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Chris Berger
Director, Communications Chris Berger is responsible for communications and innovation strategies that advance program priorities and enhance the impact of GHR and its partners. In this role, he is re-imagining how philanthropy can catalyze social innovation and systemic change while co-leading the $1M BridgeBuilder Challenge. Previously principal of Berger Brands and director of global social impact at Weber Shandwick, Chris has represented clients including American Refugee Committee, Public Radio International, Cargill CSR, This American Life and NEED Magazine. He has supervised teams addressing issues including global development, human rights, freedom of press, environmental sustainability and social entrepreurism through strategies and programs that engage change-makers around the world. Chris is a British-American Project fellow and member of the Innovation Advisory Board of Sapientia, having formerly served as board member of Global Minnesota, The Push Institute and Urban Boatbuilders. He is also a recent Policy Fellow at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs and member of the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Minnesota delegation. Chris holds a bachelor’s degree in international studies and political science from Macalester College. |
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Kerry Medek
Director, Grants Management and Learning Kerry Medek oversees and manages the systems, tools and operations that drive high-quality, cost-effective and efficient grants management across the grant life-cycle, and the ability to capture, analyze, learn about and communicate grant results in the areas of global development, education and health. This includes developing a culture of asking questions, supporting experimentation and creativity and enhancing the foundation’s ability to tell its story of impact. Additionally, Kerry serves as Special Assistant to the CEO managing the work plans and activities of the board and governance committee. Before joining GHR, Kerry was a governance coordinator at the Minnesota State Bar Association, where she managed communications for 21 district bar associations across the state. She also coordinated refugee programs for Catholic Charities of Tennessee, managing a multi-year program serving newly arrived refugees. Her experience includes community and corporate relations, volunteer recruitment, grant writing, program development and financial management. Kerry is active with the Minnesota Chapter of Grant Managers Network and serves as director of the board at the national level. She earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tenn. |
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Kathleen Mahoney, Ph.D.
Senior Program Officer, Global Development Kathleen Mahoney, Ph.D., manages GHR Foundation’s Sister Support initiative, coordinating funding to congregations of women religious in the United States and Africa to empower their efforts to share their spiritual witness and serve those in need. Working with partners to build the capacity of congregations of Catholic sisters, Sister Support focuses on recruiting and developing young leaders, retaining existing members and developing the resources necessary for well-being and advancement. Mahoney is the recent past president of Porticus North America Foundation, where her portfolio included global work with Catholic sisters. She has held academic posts at Washington University in St. Louis, Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis and the Lynch School of Education at Boston College, where she founded the Institute for Administrators in Catholic Higher Education. She serves on the boards for the Cristo Rey Network and the Louisville Institute. Kathleen was a Spencer Dissertation Fellow and a National Academy of Education Postdoctoral Fellow. She earned a doctorate in education from the University of Rochester and degrees from the University of Toronto and the University of Notre Dame. |
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Dan Lauer
Senior Program Officer, Global Development Dan Lauer is the senior program officer for GHR Foundation’s Children in Families initiative, and works to leverage child protection interventions that strengthen families, deinstitutionalize children and drive further evidence of innovative, pro-family approaches. Partnering with experts in the field, Children in Families uses innovative, research-based solutions to scale and support effective programs while pursuing systemic change through pro-family alliances, systems and policies. Dan was previously vice president of international programs at Holt International Children’s Services in Eugene, Ore. where he worked in various capacities since 1986. During his tenure, his responsibilities included work in Latin America, Africa, Eastern Europe and Asia, finding permanent, secure, in-country families or family-like settings for children without homes. Dan earned a master’s degree in international development, community and regional planning from the University of Missouri at Columbia, Miss. and a bachelor’s degree in community services and public affairs from the University of Oregon. |
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Meg Gehlen Nodzon
Senior Program Officer, Education Meg Gehlen Nodzon is a senior program officer for GHR Foundation’s education program, focused on closing the achievement gap by strengthening urban Catholic schools and funding high-quality, values-based higher education. She also oversees the foundation’s Solutions program, providing capacity-building grants across GHR’s grantees. At GHR, Meg’s major accomplishments include implementing the first three Catholic STEM schools in the Twin Cities, creating a private school management network and bringing a program from Boston College to the Twin Cities that addresses out of school needs of students. She has also presented her research and GHR’s grantmaking approach at various conferences. Meg currently chairs the governance committee serves of Cookie Cart, is vice-president on the University of St. Thomas Alumni Board of Directors and is the immediate-past chair of the University of St. Thomas College of Arts and Sciences Board of Advisors. She also chairs a task force on national the Catholic Schools affinity group with FADICA (Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities). Prior to joining GHR in 2013, she served as Director of Development at MacPhail Center for Music and held various positions at The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. Meg earned a master’s degree from Hamline University and a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of St. Thomas. |
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Mark Guy
Senior Program Officer, Global Development Mark Guy is a senior program officer for GHR Foundation’s global development program with a focus on child welfare systems strengthening and keeping children in family- and community-based settings, as well as supporting GHR's BridgeBuilder program. A global development professional with over 13 years of experience, Mark previously split his time between GHR and its sister foundation, Better Way Foundation, leading the development of multiple early childhood development partnerships in seven different Native American communities, as well as overseeing partnerships with various local non-profit organizations in Tanzania and Lesotho. Prior to his time in philanthropy, Mark served as the Africa regional coordinator for the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) program at PATH, a global health non-profit organization based in Seattle. His primary responsibilities included managing a portfolio of WASH initiatives in multiple East African countries, expanding the reach of WASH innovations into additional geographies. Mark’s experience includes strategic planning, partnership development, international program management and evaluation, non-profit collaboration, and community development. Mark’s non-profit career began with his volunteer service as a math and physical science teacher for WorldTeach at a junior secondary boarding school outside of Gobabis, Namibia. Mark earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and economics from St. Olaf College. |
