December 16, 2024
For Immediate Release
The Watertown Community Foundation Welcomes Four New Board Members
The Watertown Community Foundation relies on the Board of Directors to provide strategic guidance to grant making and oversight of the Foundation’s financial resources. In recent months, the Foundation has welcomed four new members to the Board of Directors: Nathalie Highland, Kathryn Madden, Jennifer Nicholson, and Leah Pennino.
Nathalie Highland
Nathalie Highland is Senior Director of Donor Engagement and Events at Environmental Defense Fund. Previously, she worked for twenty-five years at the Union of Concerned Scientists, most recently as Deputy Director of Development. Her work focuses on fundraising, strategic planning, board development and management, and creating connections and community. She served on the board of the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge for eight years, including five years as president. She holds a master’s and PhD in Theatre from Bowling Green State University. As Watertown residents since 2009, she and her husband are raising two children who attend Watertown Public Schools.
Kathryn Madden
Kathryn Madden is an urban planner who has worked with many cities, universities, and communities to shape their futures, while also teaching the next generation of planners at Clark University and Harvard University. Focus areas have been economic development, community engagement, and creation of place. Kathryn currently serves on the Watertown Resident Advisory Committee, helping the city recruit and make appointments to its volunteer boards, commissions, and committees. She first experienced Watertown through her work at Sasaki, and in 1991, she and her husband moved here. Both of their daughters are graduates of Watertown High School.
Jen Nicholson
Jen Nicholson is the Events Coordinator for the historic Commander’s Mansion in Watertown. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and Human Resources from Boston College and a Master of Arts in Teaching from Regis College, along with a decade of experience as an elementary educator. A past president of the Cunniff PTO for three terms, Jen currently serves on several volunteer boards, including Watertown Cable Access, Watertown Boys & Girls Club and Watertown SEPAC. Jen and her husband are both K-12 graduates of Watertown Public Schools and their two children attend Cunniff Elementary.
Leah Pennino
Leah Pennino is Vice President of Marketing and Communications at YouthBuild Global, the headquarters for more than 320 YouthBuild programs around the world. Leah brings 25 years of marketing and communications experience in the for-profit and nonprofit sectors. She previously held positions at Suffolk Construction, The Princeton Review, Lois Paul & Partners, and GBH-TV, where she oversaw publicity for the Emmy Award-winning series This Old House and 11 other national TV brands. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Communications from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a graduate certificate in public relations from Emerson College. A resident of Watertown for 20 years, Leah lives with her husband and two children who attend Watertown Public Schools.
“We are thrilled to welcome our new board members. They join an extraordinary Board of Directors! As residents, community leaders, and professional experts in their fields, our board brings deep knowledge of Watertown to the work of the Foundation. They help ground the Watertown Community Foundation in the needs and interests of the people who live and work here. They are passionate about this community and making sure our grants have impact. The Foundation and the Watertown community are fortunate and to be guided by their expertise, experience and commitment,” said Tia Tilson, Executive Director.
About Watertown Community Foundation
Through the power of transformative giving, the Watertown Community Foundation works to advance and support positive change for the people who live and work in Watertown. With financial support from the Watertown community, since 2003 the Foundation has awarded more than $3,000,000 in grants to non-profits to help end food insecurity, keep people housed, educate kids, lift-up the arts, and create community connections to bring people together. See our list of grantees here.
WCF Board of Directors: Lauren Coughlin Unsworth and Mary Ann Mulligan, Co-Presidents; Albrik Avanessian; Emily Barclay; Ninos Hanna; Nathalie Highland; Eileen Hsü-Balzer; Heather Leary; Kathryn Madden; Jennifer Nicholson, Anthony Paolillo; Leah Pennino, Lora Sabin; Robert Shay; David Siegel; and Felicia Sullivan.
Media Contact: Tia Tilson
Watertown Community Foundation
tia.tilson@watertownfoundation.org