Download press release (PDF) >>> here

The Foundation for the Mid South today announced its appointment of Dr. Ivye L. Allen to the position of president, effective March 13, 2006. Dr. Allen is an experienced executive with an extensive background in philanthropy emphasizing economic development, community development, and systems change.

Dr. Allen currently serves as Chief Operating Officer for MDC Inc. in Chapel Hill, North Carolina – a nonprofit organization that works to advance equity issues and opportunities in the American South. Her responsibilities included managing the daily operations of the organization while also working on philanthropy issues.

“We knew that Dr. Allen's experiences at MDC, in particular, would complement the Foundation for the Mid South's work to promote racial, social, and economic equity in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi,” said FMS Search Committee Chair and former Mississippi Governor William Winter. “As a native of Greenville, Mississippi, she has a unique perspective of and has continued to stay involved with the issues and opportunities that exist in our region. Her service to Jackson State University as a visiting professor, to the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation as a trustee/director, and to MDC and its commitment to promoting equity and opportunity will be invaluable assets to the work of the Foundation for the Mid South.”

Prior to joining MDC, Dr. Allen was a consultant to nonprofit organizations and taught graduate public policy and urban affairs courses at Jackson State University and Hunter College. In addition, Dr. Allen served as director of fellowship programs for the Rockefeller Brothers Fund in New York. Her education includes a Ph.D. in social policy from Columbia University; a M.S. in Urban Affairs from Hunter College; a M.B.A. in marketing and international business from New York University; and a bachelor's in economics from Howard University.

The Foundation's board of directors retained Boardwalk Consulting of Atlanta, Georgia, in early 2005 to conduct a national search to fill the president position. “It was an extensive search with a long list of blue-chip individuals as possible candidates,” said Dr. Beverly Wade Hogan, Board Chair. “Despite the devastation that occurred in the region mid-way through our search, we kept our standards high and did not make any compromises because of time constraints or the effects from the hurricanes. We are very fortunate to have Dr. Allen directing the Foundation during this critical time for our region.”

Dr. Allen replaces the Foundation's first president, Dr. George Penick, who stepped down to become the Director of RAND Corporation's newly created RAND Gulf States Policy Institute – a new resource in the region that plans to benefit the hurricane-ravaged states by providing the highest quality of analysis and data to lawmakers, the nonprofit sector, and the private sector.

For more information, please email >>> Chris Crothers.

>>> BACK