meet the panel
The Judges
Our judging panel is made up of senior strategic communications leaders from nonprofits and foundations of all shapes and sizes from across the country.
Our 2026 judges
Olivia Chung,
W.K. Kellogg Foundation
Bárbara Ortega,
Philea
Madeleine Bair,
2025 Winner
El Tímpano
Selina Patton,
The Rockefeller Foundation
Stephanie Wang,
Lumina Foundation
Stephanie Dreyer,
The Rockefeller Foundation
Latia Henderson,
Gates Family Foundation
Valerie Goode,
San Francisco Foundation
Val Vilott,
Susan Buffett Thompson Foundation
Vanessa Schnaidt,
Cause Communications
Alumni
Past judges
Brian Eule
Heising-Simons Foundation
Jade Floyd
Former Network Board Chair
Global Strategy Group
Jason Hunke
Former Network Board member
Vulcan Inc.
Alfred Ironside
Former Network Board Chair
MIT
Vidya Krishnamurthy
Network Board member
William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
Kristen Mack
Network Board Member
MacArthur Foundation
Melanie Newman
Planned Parenthood Federation of America
Jennifer Oldham
The Healing Trust
Najma Roberts
Democracy Fund
Jesse Salazar
Former Network Board Chair
McKinsey Center for Government
Miles Sandler
Kauffman Foundation
Sarah Shank
The Truth Initiative
Courtney Z. McCall
Missouri Foundation for Health
Richard Tate
The California Wellness Foundation
Shaheen Towles
The Duke Endowment
Ken Weine
Former Network Board member
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Lyda Vanegas
Mary's Center
Andy Burness
Burness Communications
Vanessa Correa
Mellon Foundation
Rachel Schulson
Self-employed
Anne Martens
King County Regional Homelessness Authority
Maria Speiser
MacArthur Foundation
Michele Moore
Ford Foundation
Marty McOmber
Casey Family Programs
Allyn Brooks-LaSure
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Jill Schwartz
Network Board Member
World Trade Center Institute
Bruna Bouhid-Sollod
United We Dream
José Muñoz
United We Dream
Fiona Guthrie,
Innocence Project
Kim Wallace Carlson,
Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation
Elizabeth Cahill,
Surdna Foundation
Keith Aikens,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Alex Johnson,
California Wellness Foundation
Sylvia Ewing,
Slipstream
Liz Eckert,
PAN Foundation
Jennie Day-Burget,
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Melissa Davis,
Press Forward
Naomi Seligman,
2023 Winner
Whistleblower Aid
Karolle Rabarison,
Online News Association
Marisol Aviña,
2024 Winner
The California Endowment
Jennifer Kulczycki,
Kresge Foundation
Anthony Grimes,
Bonfils-Stanton Foundation
Crystal Page,
The Conrad Prebys Foundation
Jamie Perez,
Center for American Progress
Julia Layman,
Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
