New york: Dr. Francisco Cigarroa, chair of the Board of Trustees of the Ford Foundation, announced that Heather Gerken will become the 11th president of the Ford Foundation in November of 2025, succeeding Darren Walker. Gerken is the current dean of Yale Law School and a nationally recognized expert on constitutional law and democracy.
According to Ghana News Agency, Dr. Francisco Cigarroa expressed confidence in Gerken's ability to enhance the Ford Foundation's operations and grantmaking. He emphasized her experience in both the philanthropic and legal sectors and her dedication to justice centered on democratic values and advancing human achievement.
Paula Moreno, who served on the presidential search committee, highlighted Gerken's exceptional intellect and commitment to global justice. As the second woman to lead the Ford Foundation, Moreno believes Gerken will drive innovation and inspire systemic change.
As dean of Yale Law School, Gerken focused on reducing economic barriers in the legal profession and increasing access for underrepresented students. She introduced full-tuition scholarships for students from low-income backgrounds and improved veteran and first-generation student representation.
Gerken also led the withdrawal of major law schools from the US News and World Report ranking, addressing concerns about its impact on public interest law careers and need-based aid. She founded Yale Law School's San Francisco Affirmative Litigation Project Clinic, which achieved significant legal victories, including a multimillion-dollar opioid litigation settlement and the landmark case legalizing same-sex marriage in California.
Heather Gerken expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to lead the Ford Foundation, aiming to protect democracy and the rule of law while furthering the foundation's mission for a just world. Her appointment follows an extensive search initiated when Darren Walker announced his departure after leading the foundation for over a decade.
Darren Walker congratulated Gerken and praised her dedication to philanthropy and law, confident that she will propel the foundation's mission forward. Prior to Yale, Gerken was a Harvard Law School professor and an associate at Jenner and Block, litigating voting rights cases.
Gerken has clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter and Judge Stephen Reinhardt in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She holds a juris doctor degree from the University of Michigan Law School and a bachelor's degree from Princeton University.
Gerken is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Law Institute and serves as a trustee of Princeton University and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Her scholarly work appears in publications like The Atlantic, The Boston Globe, NPR, The New York Times, and Time Magazine. She authored The Democracy Index: Why Our Election System is Failing and How to Fix It and edited Race, Reform, and Regulation of the Electoral Process: Recurring Puzzles in American Democracy.