Board of Directors
Nicholas J. Brunick, Chair
Applegate & Thorne-Thomsen PC
Debra S. Warner, First Vice-Chair
Deloitte LLP
Bryan I. Schwartz, Second Vice-Chair
Levenfeld Pearlstein, LLC
Norma B. Weir, Secretary
Walgreen Co.
Scott E. Pickens, Treasurer
Schiff Hardin LLP
Scott C. Swanson, Immediate Past Chair
Charter One Bank Illinois
Consuella L. Brown
Woods Fund of Chicago
Jay Fahn
First Eagle Bank
Margaret J. Paddock
U.S. Bank
Nancy E. Paridy
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago
Jennifer W. Steans
Financial Investments Corporation
David M. Sweig
Bain & Co.
Courtney E. VanLonkhuyzen
Motorola Mobility, Inc.
Michael G. Welbel
M.G. Welbel & Associates, Inc.
Robin L. Wolkoff
Fox, Hefter, Swibel,
Levin & Carroll, LLC
Rosanna A. Márquez, President
Eleanor Foundation
Eleanor Foundation Appoints Maricar L. Ramos as Program Officer
Nonprofit professional to expand Eleanor Network,
meeting the needs of working female heads-of-households
May 17, 2011
The Eleanor Foundation, a Chicago-based grant-maker which invests in innovative programs that help working female heads-of-households to achieve and maintain economic independence, has appointed Maricar L. Ramos as program officer, announced President Rosanna A. Márquez.
A longtime financial development and grant-making professional, Ramos will manage the expansion of the organization's Eleanor Network, an ongoing collaboration with direct service and other organizations throughout Chicago to help working female heads-of-households to achieve sustained economic self-sufficiency.
More than 330,000 households in the Chicago region are headed by working women who make less than a living wage, with average annual incomes of $19,000. These women are typically the only wage-earners and the sole caregivers for their children.
The Eleanor Foundation makes grants to direct service organizations that offer programs to provide these hardworking women with job-skills training to help them advance in their careers and earn a livable wage. The Foundation also funds programs that offer wrap-around services to ensure these women's success, including those that promote access to affordable housing, dependable childcare, and financial coaching and credit counseling.
Previously, Ramos was the financial development grant manager for YMCA of the USA (Y-USA), the national resource office for the 2,600 YMCAs across the country. In this position since 2003, Ramos administered $8 million in corporate and foundation grants annually, and developed strong relationships with corporate and foundation partners.
"Maricar Ramos has a strong background in program development and has great familiarity with the nonprofit sector earned in her years at Y-USA and in her previous roles," said Eleanor Foundation President and CEO Rosanna Márquez. "Her experience is a great fit for us, and we are excited to enlist her as we expand the Eleanor Network and fund programs that meet the core needs of the women and children in our target population."
Prior to her position at Y-USA, Ramos was the grants manager at ChildServ, where she raised corporate and foundation funds. Previously, she was a researcher for the University of Notre Dame Institute for Latino Studies and a grants manager at the Illinois Violence Prevention Authority in Chicago, where she administered $13 million in state grant funds for programs designed to prevent violence in schools across Illinois. Ramos has also worked for Chicago Communities in Schools and for Family Focus. She holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of Chicago.
About the Eleanor Foundation
A research-driven public grant-making fund, the Eleanor Foundation invests in innovative programs that help working female heads-of-households in Chicago with incomes of between $10,000 and $40,000 to achieve and maintain economic independence. The Eleanor Foundation is building the Eleanor Network, a unique collaboration with direct service organizations and other partners to build and maintain programs that provide these women with access to job-skills training and career development services, along with access to affordable housing, dependable childcare, and financial coaching. The Eleanor Foundation also sponsors research on the needs of the women in our target population, which helps us ensure that programs in the Eleanor Network deliver the services that these women need.
© 2012 The Eleanor Foundation. All Rights Reserved.