The Oregon Community Foundation
Lisa Mensah serves as the President & CEO of The Oregon Community Foundation since September 2022. Previously, Lisa held the position of President & CEO at Opportunity Finance Network from March 2017 to January 2023. Lisa also served as Under Secretary for Rural Development at USDA Rural Development from December 2014 to January 2017. Prior experience includes the role of Executive Director for the Initiative on Financial Security at the Aspen Institute from December 2002 to November 2014 and Deputy Director of Economic Development at The Ford Foundation from 1989 to 2002. Lisa began their career as a financial analyst at Citi from 1986 to 1989. Educational background includes a degree from Harvard University (1979-1983) and further studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) (1983-1985).
The Oregon Community Foundation
The mission of Oregon Community Foundation is to improve lives for all Oregonians through the power of philanthropy. OCF works with individuals, families, businesses and organizations to create charitable funds to support the community causes they care about. Through these funds, in 2020 OCF awarded more than $230 million in grants and scholarships. Thousands of citizens have created a permanent endowment for Oregon through OCF – an endowment that will help Oregonians today and for generations to come. Who We Are: OCF's endowment come from thousands of Oregonians who have invested with us to help our state. OCF manages more than 3,000 individual funds of various sizes. From these funds, grants are distributed to support the critical work that nonprofit organizations are doing around Oregon. OCF is governed by a volunteer board of directors. They provide leadership to the Foundation and have the responsibility to ensure that the endowment is managed in an efficient, thoughtful way. We rely on more than 1,600 local volunteers who give us deep-rooted knowledge of community needs. Our professional staff helps donors realize their charitable goals and nonprofit organizations become stronger. What We Do: The Oregon Community Foundation is committed to improving life and uniting Oregonians through philanthropy. Thanks to thousands of donors and hundreds of individual funds, OCF is the leader in Oregon philanthropy, strengthening communities across the state.