AIF New England will honor Susan Whitehead, life member of the MIT’s Board of Trustees and Vice Chair of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT, for her service to the Arts, Sciences and Philanthrophy at the annual gala on Saturday, March 28th at the Renaissance Waterfront Hotel.

Susan Whitehead currently serves on the boards of several significant educational and non-profit organizations. She brings a wealth of knowledge in the fields of higher education, the arts and science. Whitehead is currently Chair of the Board of Trustees of Berklee College of Music, a global college of contemporary music, dance, and theatre.

Raj Sharma, AIF Board Member said - "We are delighted to honor Susan Whitehead for her long time support and commitment to AIF and her life long passion for Indian art, culture and music. She is a true global citizen with a sense of humanity, empathy and compassion for the under privileged in India". 

Whitehead understands the practice and culture of basic science and the challenges facing educational institutions in the 21st century, as exemplified in her service as Life Member of the MIT Corporation (MIT’s Board of Trustees) where, since 2013, she has been an active member of it’s 9 person Executive Committee.

She is currently Vice Chair and Life Board Member of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research (at MIT), an institution she has helped to foster for 35 years.

Whitehead has provided her expertise to dozens of organizations, including as Board Member of the Museum of Science in Boston, and as Chair of Horizons for Homeless Children, the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts, Bayview Correctional Facility in New York City, and the Research Institute of Learning and Development (as founding chair). 

Currently, Whitehead is advising on the development of an important new art museum (Museum of Art and Photography) in Bangalore, India, as a trustee of their affiliated US Foundation. This activity is a labor of love as Whitehead has been a life-long visitor to India, captivated by the culture, and character of the people.  She has worked on several projects in the region, both in the arts and social innovation arenas.

In her early career, Whitehead worked as a trial attorney in private practice in Boston and served as an assistant district attorney in New York City. She directed a clinical program at Brooklyn Law School; worked for the American Civil Liberties Union in Jackson, Mississippi; and founded a comprehensive education program for the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. 

In 2016, Whitehead was honored by the organization, Women in Science and Engineering, for her significant contributions in supporting young women in their development as scientists. She was lauded in 2019 for her more than 25 years of commitment as a very early Board Member of Horizons for Homeless Children.

Beginning in high school when Whitehead co-founded a suicide prevention hotline, funded by a NY state grant, Whitehead has demonstrated her commitment to active and engaged participation. She also was a tutor in the then newly established Head Start program, and a dedicated long-time volunteer at the Fortune Society (for recently released prison inmates) in NYC.

 Her life-long service has included serving on dozens of not-for-profit boards and chairing countless standing and ad hoc committees for policy development, strategy, CEO searches, Title IX reviews, organizational development, audit and more.

Whitehead earned her J.D. from Cardozo School of Law in 1982 and her B.S. from Cornell University in 1976.

Whitehead is a global hiker, avid skier, and dedicated art enthusiast in the visual and performing  arts

About the American England Foundation New England gala

To register  aifnegala2020.givesmart.com

This year’s gala will highlight AIF’s transformative impact on women and girls in India. In keeping with that theme, you represent the true essence of the evening; your steadfast commitment to philanthropy, to the arts and the community and the passion you bring into these areas that showcases integrity, grace and intelligence.

 AIF’s multi-pronged interventions in education, public health and livelihoods primarily serve the needs of women and girls, who are among the most disadvantaged in society. These interventions advance the cause of gender equality. They strengthen and uplift communities and ecosystems, and they contribute directly to UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

 AIF’s programs have an outsized impact on women and girls. For example:

• AIF’s Learning and Migration Program (LAMP) has led to an 81% increase in female enrollment and attendance in migrant prone areas of Odisha, and a 95% increase in Gujarat.
• The Maternal and Newborn Survival Initiative (MANSI) has helped increase institutional deliveries by 87% and reduce newborn mortality by 46%
• Women are the primary borrowers in the Rickshaw Sangh program. Joint spousal ownership of rickshaws has increased overall family income by 82%, with a multiplied impact that empowers entire families.

AIF has received the highest ratings from the leading independent rating agencies Charity Navigator and GuideStar, a strong endorsement of our commitment to transparency and accountability as well as our robust organizational health.

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