Executive Director, Compton Foundation | NCFP Fellow (2018–2021)
June Wilson, a celebrated philanthropic leader in racial justice advocacy and alternative approaches to legacy and perpetuity, is Executive Director of the Compton Foundation. She is guiding the 75-year-old philanthropic organization’s trajectory as it moves all of its assets toward its purpose: climate resilience, peace and security, democracy, reproductive justice, and narrative strategy. To that end, Wilson is shaping the foundation’s reparations strategy and transitioning its partners toward new avenues of support. Overall, the foundation’s process of “spending up,” in alignment with its mission, will enable Compton to close its doors at the end of 2025.
Wilson brings extensive hands-on expertise to this effort, having guided the sunset process of the Quixote Foundation in Seattle, Washington. She has engaged philanthropic families and foundations in examining and designing practices and policies that promote racial equity and justice, repair, and return, and encourages foundations to consider increased financial payout and alternative models to perpetuity. Wilson’s background as a choreographer, movement-based performer, and community arts organizer are foundational to her leadership style. She values reflective listening and utilizes creative and improvisational approaches to feed and sustain her life, her leadership, and her relationships with others. Wilson uses the pronouns she, her, and hers, and cherishes her identities of mother, daughter, sister, spouse, and friend.
