On this final day of November comes news of a retirement that wasn’t seen coming. Communities Foundation of Texas President/CEO Dave Scullin has just announced that he will retire in March.
Since joining CFT as its leader in 2017, Dave has grown “the largest community foundation in Texas and one of the largest in the nation” during one of the most trying times in history.
When the pandemic landed on the doorstep of the world in early 2020, resulting into a global state of confusion with non-profits scrambling to help those in need, Dave coordinated CFT’s mobilization of more than $375 million for non-profits in collaboration and leadership with donors and partner funding organizations. “This was primarily accomplished through North Texas Cares (a collaborative of 30+ partners), three Giving Days, gifts from CFT’s donor-advised fund holders and through the deployment of nine separate COVID-19 relief funds.”
According to CFT Board Chair-Elect Richie Butler, “Dave has presided over a period of unprecedented growth and transformation at Communities Foundation of Texas. We are deeply grateful for his leadership, dedication and vision, and for what he has done to boost the power of philanthropy across our region.”
In addition to his rising to the challenges presented by COVID-19, Dave has managed the following accomplishments during his six years at CFT:
- Annual gifts received saw a 118% increase, to over $205 million in 2022.
- 2022 grant-making to nonprofits has grown by 57%, reaching a record high of more than $165 million.
- North Texas Giving Day has become the nation’s largest single day of community-wide giving, this year pumping $62.6 million into more than 3,000 local nonprofits from 94,000 donors in North Texas, plus all 50 states and over 40 countries. This result represents a 69% increase over the past 6 years, and brings the total dollars raised through North Texas Giving Day to more than $500 million.
- CFT significantly expanded and accelerated the impact of its consultancy and advocacy initiative, Educate Texas, as a trusted change agent to strengthen K12 and higher education in Texas. Educate Texas is focused on increasing academic achievement and educational equity by leading programs, policy, and partnerships to reach over 2.5 million students statewide across 400 campuses and 250+ school districts, colleges and universities with its innovative work concentrated on the goal of increasing the number of students earning a degree or credentials toward a living wage.
- The establishment of CFT as “A Place Where Talent Thrives” focused on the attraction, development, and retention of outstanding employee leaders to maximize the organization’s community impact.
- CFT’s annual program and services operations, particularly Educate Texas, have tripled to $51 million and staff has grown by 76% to 139 employees, making CFT one of the largest and most impactful of nearly 800 community foundations across the country.
- Dave broadened CFT’s strategic plan to incorporate the need to advance equity across the community. He launched a formal Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiative, which established a DEI framework, including the appointment of a Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer as a direct report, to ensure equity would become embedded in all of CFT’s work and externally in the community.
Referencing Dave’s impact internally, CFT Board Chair Alfreda Norman said, “Dave’s leadership has inspired staff to add their own unique value across their various areas of expertise in alignment with our vision of a thriving community for all. The result has been growth not only in giving and grant-making, but CFT’s impact has also become more meaningful, measurable, and enduring.”
As a result of the announcement, Richie will chair the search committee to select an executive recruitment firm to conduct a nationwide search for Dave’s successor. In order to streamline the transition, Dave will stay on board until Friday, March 3.
In making the announcement, the former Deloitte and Arthur Andersen executive said, “It has been a true honor to lead CFT these past six years. I am proud of what we have achieved towards building a better community and strengthening Texas education. Our extensive progress has been a collective effort through our amazing staff and our dynamic Board of Trustees, in collaboration with our many partners. CFT is uniquely well-positioned to build on this momentum and continue this path, driving greater impact across our community, our state, and on behalf of Texas students.”
* Photo provided by Communities Foundation of Texas