ACF Announces Transition of President & CEO

The Alaska Community Foundation announced today that President & CEO Candace Winkler is stepping down from her position, effective June 30, 2015. Ms. Winkler has accepted a position with The Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara as their incoming President and Chief Executive Officer.

“Through Ms. Winkler’s leadership, ACF has grown in internal capacity and breadth,” states Alex Slivka, Board Chair of The Alaska Community Foundation. “We are sad to see Ms. Winkler go, but we understand that this is a great opportunity for her to support the needs of her family.”

Since joining ACF, Ms. Winkler has led the organization through several statewide initiatives and projects, including providing administrative support of the popular “Pick.Click.Give.” charitable contribution program, partnering with the State of Alaska and the Alaska Children’s Trust to manage the Teen Suicide Prevention Grant Program, and collaborating with statewide partners and the Anchorage Daily News to produce the “State of Intoxication” series. She also oversaw the creation of The Philanthropy Hub, where philanthropic partners work together in a shared space.

“Working at ACF has been one of most rewarding experiences of my professional life,” states Ms. Winkler. “During my tenure, ACF has doubled in asset size and grown its statewide footprint. It is in excellent financial shape with healthy reserves. I’m proud of the work we’ve done and I leave knowing ACF has a great future.”

The Foundation’s Executive Committee has retained Alaska Executive Search and initiated the search for ACF’s next President & CEO. Should the process take longer than 3 months, Susan Behlke Foley has been selected to serve as Interim CEO. Ms. Foley served 9 years on ACF’s Board of Directors, including two years as Chair. She is an attorney and shareholder in the firm of Foley, Foley & Pearson, P.C. with a B.A. in Economics from Whitman College and a J.D. from Lewis & Clark Northwestern School of Law. A third generation Alaskan, she has lived in Anchorage for more than 30 years.