Emily A. West | President and Executive Director

A member of the West Foundation board of directors since 1985, Emily A. West became the Executive Director of the West Foundation in 1996. Prior to joining the foundation, she spent more than a decade working in the fields of public relations and marketing. During this period, she accumulated experience in both public and private sectors, including time with Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, where she was Director of Marketing for The Fund Raising School.

During her tenure there, Ms. West earned a Certificate of Fund Raising Management. She acquired additional training in leadership development when she was chosen to participate in the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Indianapolis Program. These educational experiences have served to augment her AB from Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and her degree as a Master of International Public Policy from the Johns Hopkins University Paul H. Nietze School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, D.C.

Ms. West has been active on numerous boards in the arts and social service sectors as well as with international organizations Hesperian Health Guides and ProLiteracy. She currently serves on advisory councils for TechnoServe and Cooperative for Education and frequently provides pro bono consulting to multiple organizations in her areas of expertise: philanthropy, non-profit management, fund raising and marketing.