Kevin Walker

he/him/his

President and CEO

Joined Northwest Area Foundation: May 2008

EMAIL

See blog posts from Kevin

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.” — Desmond Tutu

Kevin spearheads the Foundation’s efforts to stand alongside changemakers in our region of eight states and 76 Native nations and fund work that leads to racial, social, and economic justice. At the heart of this approach is NWAF’s commitment, honored every year since 2012, to target 40 percent of its giving to Native-led organizations.

Other signature aspects of the Foundation’s work during his tenure include an expanded commitment to impact investing and an organization-wide drive to advance justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI). Kevin is especially proud that NWAF’s work environment, board culture, and philanthropic strategy embed JEDI in everything the organization does.

Prior to joining the Northwest Area Foundation, Kevin spent 13 years with the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation in Flint, MI. To this day he thinks of his former Mott colleagues as family, and the city of Flint as a place he was proud to call home. His career in the nonprofit sector began in the early 1990s with Food Gatherers, a kick-ass community-based anti-hunger organization in Ann Arbor, MI, whose mascot is a giant carrot.

Kevin serves on the board of BoardSource, the national organization dedicated to excellence in nonprofit governance. He previously chaired the boards of Philanthropy Northwest and the Minnesota Council on Foundations.

He lives in St. Paul, MN, with his wife, Lisa, a public school teacher. He and their adult sons Theo and Max are avid sports fans. Kevin stands by his New York Football Giants no matter how bad things get and has celebrated in person at two of their four Super Bowl wins. He’s also a fixture in the Supporters Section (a.k.a. The Wonderwall) at Minnesota United soccer games.

Kevin never goes a day without listening to music. Favorites include Bach’s Goldberg Variations, Stevie Wonder’s miraculous run of albums in the 1970s, and Henry Threadgill’s adventures from Air to Zooid. Ask Kevin some time about the Big Ears Festival in Knoxville, TN, where you’ll find him in March immersed for four days in some of the world’s most adventurous music.

Originally from Rye Brook, NY, Kevin is a proud graduate of Blind Brook High School. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and an MFA in poetry from the University of Michigan. He has a lifelong love for poetry, reads constantly, writes often, and publishes occasionally. Here’s a tiny poem meant for people who happen to be children:

I like
the shape
of my friend’s head.