Thrive Foundation For Youth Appoints Founder of Center for Venture Philanthropy to Serve as Executive Director

Menlo Park, California - July 1, 2008 - Thrive Foundation For Youth, a private foundation focused on helping youth achieve their potential to thrive, announced today the appointment of its new Executive Director, Carol Welsh Gray. Ms. Gray was selected following an extensive national executive search process.

"Over the next 10 years, Thrive plans to make a measurable contribution to the positive development of five million youth nationally and globally. Carol Welsh Gray embodies the proven leadership and entrepreneurial approach essential to continuing and expanding the success of the Foundation in the years to come," said Bob King, Menlo Park resident and Thrive's founding Board Chair. "Carol brings a track record of national results and expertise that is invaluable in reaching the foundation goals", added Bob's wife Dottie King, co-Trustee.

To reach the foundation goal, Thrive will leverage leading social science research that it has funded for seven years in the field of positive youth development and thriving. Ms. Gray brings to this foundation platform, a pioneering background in the field of venture philanthropy which applies elements of venture capital practice to investments in social change initiatives.

Ms. Gray founded the Center for Venture Philanthropy in 1999 at Peninsula Community Foundation, which merged into Silicon Valley Community Foundation in 2007. The Center launched five social venture funds under her tenure, addressing issues of poverty, early childhood literacy, foster care and the environment. Her work has been recognized most recently in the Stanford Business School's Journal, Social Innovation Review, Summer 2008 edition, in an article "Taking Stock of Venture Philanthropy".

"Joining the Thrive Foundation, I return to a passion to improve lives of youth, within the context of a philanthropy practice that I most enjoy. The Thrive Foundation operates in a spirit of true partnership with researchers and practioners and infuses not just cash, but the expertise and access to networks that is tremendously valuable in the social change equation," said Ms. Gray.

"This new chapter of foundation impact would not be possible without the tremendous contribution of the Foundation's Founding Trustees and Founding Executive Director, Cynthia King-Guffey. Their leadership and contagious enthusiasm for positive youth development has lead to the Foundation's investment in ground breaking research over the last decade. I am grateful for the opportunity to build upon this legacy of excellence!" says Gray.

Thrive Foundation For Youth

For the past ten years, Thrive has vigilantly pursued its mission of 'helping young people to thrive, becoming all that God intends', while focusing on four key activities: supporting and initiating research regarding thriving; supporting and strengthening the field of applied practice; developing software and internet-based thriving tools; and stimulating fresh ideas in pursuit of social transformation on behalf of the positive development of youth. Through research and practice, Thrive has developed a framework to more closely examine and understand key drivers in the process of thriving in youth. These twelve Thriving Indicators(tm) have helped shape an approach characterized by learning as much as possible about which indicators of thriving are most important to identify, assess and strengthen in the lives of individual youth in particular contexts. For more information about the Thrive Foundation For Youth visit the website at www.thrivefoundation.org.

Carol Welsh Gray

Carol Welsh Gray is the Executive Director of Thrive Foundation for Youth. As a social entrepreneur, Carol has launched eight award-winning social organizations and initiatives that include work with homeless youth, foster youth and youth violence prevention. In 1995, she pioneered the emerging field of venture philanthropy with Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network's education and corporate initiative that addressed K-12 school reform. In 1999, she founded the Center for Venture Philanthropy at Peninsula Community Foundation. During her eight-year tenure developing the Center's mission, she crafted new avenues for community investors to engage in philanthropy with an emphasis on measurable return on civic investment. Prior to her Thrive position, Carol was the founding executive director of Raising A Reader®, a national nonprofit recognized for its excellence in developing children's early literacy skills and promoting family bonding through the shared book experience.

Carol Welsh Gray Biography

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