Kevin Connors

Managing Director @Susan Crown Exchange

Chicago, IL, US

Lead strategy and grantmaking for the private foundation of Susan Crown, a business leader, health leader, and philanthropist who served as Chairman of Rush University Medical Center (ranked 16th nationally) and on the boards of Northern Trust, Brookings Institution, Yale University, and Baxter International. Invested $50M into 50+ organizations, including Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, DoSomething.org, the Aspen Institute, and several community organizations. Formed strategic partnerships with Nike, Pivotal Ventures (Melinda French Gates), the Stanford Design School, and American Institutes for Research to pursue multi-year national initiatives. Co-founded a research and innovation center at Harvard University and secured a partnership with the U.S. Surgeon General. Co-founded an accelerator for social impact organizations; hired and advised founding leadership team. Founded the Million Coaches Challenge, a national initiative to train 1 million sports coaches in adolescent development and mental health. Co-founded new funds for mental health and wellbeing by partnering with 20+ funders, including Archewell (Duke and Duchess of Sussex), Hopelab, Nike, and the NBA. Conducted rigorous due diligence to identify high potential leaders, organizations, and issue areas for funding; developed investment thesis for two new portfolios. Advised grantees on strategy, measurement and evaluation, communications, and capacity building, with 86% of grantees meeting or exceeding their implementation and impact goals. Co-developed organizational strategy with the Executive Director and presented to the Board of Directors, which includes senior leaders from McKinsey & Company and Harvard Law School. Provided thought leadership through panels, interviews, conference presentations, and mentorship. Co-managed a team of 15 full-time personnel and consultants.

Indiana University Bloomington

Bachelor of Science in Business

Harvard University

Master of Education Policy & Management