As Vice President of Innovation, Sarah leads the Convenings & Networks portfolio which advances programmatic priorities and a broader global agenda for a more equitable and sustainable future through strategic convening and partnership development. The team explores innovative opportunities to address global challenges requiring cross-disciplinary coalitions to analyze, prototype, and advance solutions that lead to transformational impact. Many of these “new frontiers” explorations blend in-house research, exploratory seed grants, convenings, and other forms of incentivizing collaboration between partners. The team also oversees programming for the Bellagio Center including residencies and conferences.
Sarah began her career at The Rockefeller Foundation in 2006, leaving in 2015 to serve as Senior Advisor to the Chancellor of the New York City Department of Education. She then became the Executive Director of The Fund for Public Schools. She was most recently Chief Operating Officer at 100Kin10, a high-performing network of 300+ organizations across the country working together to improve STEM education. Sarah brings to RF expertise in philanthropy, partnership development and network engagement, operational systems, and strategic planning. Sarah holds a Master of Arts from Columbia University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Politics from New York University.
Authored Content
Apr 17 2024 Perspective Strengthening Ideas Through the Wisdom of a Brain Trust The world's challenges demand collaborative solutions. The Brain Trust fosters connections among participants to share experiences and ideas. This networking approach recognizes that no single leader or organization can solve global issues alone. By tapping into diverse networks, the Brain Trust aims to accelerate the impact of innovative ideas and promote collective action.
May 01 2023 Perspective Bellagio Center Opens Applications for 2024 Convenings At The Rockefeller Foundation, we have seen time and time again the power convenings have to change the world. In the 60 years that the Bellagio Center has hosted convenings, the Center has played a fundamental role in helping build new fields of work, forge alliances, discover breakthroughs, and accelerate collective action towards the world’s […]
Feb 02 2023 Perspective Reflections on the 2022 Bellagio Center Class of Leading Thinkers and Doers In 2022, we welcomed 102 diverse and pioneering residents from over 28 different countries to the Bellagio Center. Representing a wide range of expertise and cultural experiences, they arrived to work on projects varying in topic and traversing a broad set of fields and disciplines. We invited them to advance their work at the Bellagio […]
Oct 11 2021 Perspective The Bellagio Center: Open Again and Supporting Leaders To Shape a Stronger, More Sustainable and Equitable World For more than 50 years, The Rockefeller Foundation has hosted leading practitioners from around the globe at our conference center in Bellagio, Italy to build and mobilize alliances of diverse stakeholders around a shared vision, empowering widespread collaboration, innovation and action; and enabling mutual accountability for progress. In the Spring of 2020, we for the […]
Jun 25 2014 Perspective Training Models for Employment in Africa's Digital Economy Results for Development (R4D) has recently published a report with the support of The Rockefeller Foundation, Training Models for Employment in the Digital Economy. A core component of our Digital Jobs Africa Initiative is training high potential but disadvantaged youth for work in the digital economy. Training that is linked to job opportunities is fundamental […]