Areas of expertise:

• Program and project management
• Mentoring and staff development
• Teaching and training
• Writing and public speaking
• Grants management and stewardship
  
  
  

 

Jodi Samuels is the Director of Strategic Support for Colleges and Scholars at the Foundation for California Community Colleges. Her portfolio focuses on grantmaking and scholarship programs, supported through endowment funding or philanthropic gifts, to provide maximum impact for student success in partnership with community colleges and college foundations. Current programs include:

• California Community Colleges Scholarship Endowment — Scholarships to support more than 3,000 students each year at all CCC campuses statewide
• Finish Line Scholars Program — Scholarships and emergency financial assistance to students at colleges in the Far North, Central Valley, and Inland Empire regions
• Real Estate Education Endowment — Scholarships for students in real-estate career oriented programs and grantmaking for projects to enhance real estate education
• Nursing Education Investment Grants — Grantmaking to colleges for projects that facilitate, coordinate with, or complement efforts to educate and train nurses through CCCs

Since 2001, Dr. Samuels has worked with education and community health non-profit organizations. She began her career in higher education in the Learning Support Services department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she was responsible for assisting foreign language teachers and staff in utilizing technology tools and resources in their classrooms. After she relocated to California, she served in multiple positions at Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, supporting the education department, running a scholarship program, and developing affiliate-wide grants. She then moved on to the California Primary Care Association, where she was responsible for generating nearly two thirds of the organization’s operating budget by procuring state, federal, and philanthropic grants and managing a comprehensive in-person and online training program for staff and leadership at community health centers across the state. Dr. Samuels also has experience with in-person and virtual teaching and training thanks to her long-time tenure at Kaplan Test Prep & Admissions. 

Despite living in California since 2004, Dr. Samuels remains a steadfast New Englander and Red Sox fan at heart. She studied French and theatre as an undergraduate at Wesleyan University in Connecticut, earned a Masters in French at Middlebury College in Vermont, and holds a PhD in French Literature from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Foundation Highlights:

• Partners with colleges and college foundations to administer student scholarship programs
• Maximizes impact across all scholarship and grantmaking programs through constant quality and process improvement
• Identifies strategies to support student-centered and equitable approaches for scholarship and grantmaking programs
• Seeks additional resources to promote equitable student success

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jodi-samuels-67a4a641/