Helmsley Charitable Trust Announces New CEO

NEW YORK—The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust today announced the appointment of Stephanie Cuskley as the Trust’s new Chief Executive Officer. Ms. Cuskley will assume the role on November 30, 2015, succeeding John R. Ettinger who has served as the Trust’s CEO since 2012.

 

Ms. Cuskley comes to the Trust from her role as the CEO of NPower, a national nonprofit that mobilizes the tech community and provides individuals, nonprofits and schools with opportunities to build tech skills and achieve their potential. Ms. Cuskley, age 55, began her career as an investment banker, first with Drexel Burnham Lambert and then as an executive vice president with Integrated Resources. She joined JPMorgan Chase in 1994, where she spent many years in high yield investment banking and developed LeadershipMorganChase, a global culture change and leadership effort that helped JPMorgan Chase foster a cooperative leadership culture and make it one of the largest and most successful companies in the world. She has served on the NYC Commission on Women's Issues and the United Way of NY Resources Committee, and she is currently a member of the board of directors of Aegion Corporation. 

 

“Stephanie’s outstanding background in organizational development and management, combined with her strong commitment to public service, will be immensely beneficial to the ongoing development of the Trust,” said the trustees of the Helmsley Charitable Trust. “We are delighted to welcome Stephanie and we look forward to working with her to advance the impact of the exceptional organizations we support.”

 

“I am incredibly honored and excited to join the Helmsley Charitable Trust,” said Ms. Cuskley. “Begun only seven years ago, the Trust is already on a path to becoming one of the most significant and high-impact private foundations in America. This progress is thanks to its world-class staff, the strong leadership of the trustees and my predecessor, John Ettinger, as well as its exceptional grantees who are advancing new ideas and improving lives every day. I look forward to working closely with the team at the Trust to continue this important work.”

 

Mr. Ettinger, age 64, joined the Trust in 2012 in an early stage of the organization’s development and has led Helmsley’s steady growth for nearly four years. During that period, all program, administrative and investment operations have been brought into the foundation and a strong staff of over 90 people has been built, annual grants made have increased by more than 100 percent, and various new grantmaking programs have been designed and begun, along with tools for monitoring and evaluating the impact of the Trust’s activities.

 

“Today, the Trust has completed the initial phase of building staff and programs, and is well-positioned in terms of operations and grantmaking,” said the trustees. “We thank John for his leadership as our first CEO and for the vital contributions he has made to advancing the impact of the Trust.”

 

“It has been my honor to serve as the first CEO of the Helmsley Charitable Trust and to see the significant progress achieved by such a dedicated staff and truly remarkable grantees,” said Mr. Ettinger. “We have made great strides in building a first-class staff, strong programs and a grantmaking structure, and I look forward to seeing the organization thrive as a significant philanthropic institution under Stephanie Cuskley’s leadership.”