Community Foundation of New Jersey welcomes Turner as chief philanthropic officer

The Community Foundation of New Jersey announced that Aaron Turner has joined the organization as its new chief philanthropic officer.

Turner comes to CFNJ from the MCJ Amelior Foundation, where she was the senior program officer. In this role, Turner managed the education portfolio in Newark, including initiating and implementing school improvement programs in partnership with Newark Public Schools, charter operators, nonprofit and community partners, and institution leaders.

“We are thrilled to have Aaron on board the Community Foundation, where her deep experience in program design and implementation will be of particular benefit to the fundholders we serve,” said Tammy Linde, chair of the CFNJ board of trustees. “Aaron is familiar not only with effective community programming, but also the types of giving that can increase the impact of such programming.”

Turner’s previous experience includes serving as a program officer at the Foundation for Newark’s Future and previously holding a number of positions at the New York City Department of Education. At NYCDOE, Turner led the Office of School Redesign, overseeing millions in federal and philanthropic grants; managed the Panel for Educational Policy, the mayoral-appointed school board; and led a major leadership pipeline for teachers.

Turner is active in New Jersey’s communities, currently serving on the boards of BRICK Education Network and Mentor Newark. She serves on the advisory boards of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center’s Arts Education Committee and Gateway U in Newark.