Ford Foundation Appoints Timothy Geithner and Mark Bradford to Board of Trustees

NEW YORK, Nov. 20, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Ford Foundation announced today the elections of former United States Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner and visual artist Mark Bradford to its Board of Trustees.

Geithner currently serves as the Chairman of Warburg Pincus. Before taking on this role, he had a distinguished career in public service, including serving as the 75th Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Treasury from 2009 to 2013. Prior to that, he was President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York from 2003 to 2009.

Bradford is a contemporary visual artist renowned for his multimedia abstract paintings that incorporate ephemera from urban environments. He explores themes of race, class, and gender across various mediums including painting, collage, video, photography, sculpture, and installation.

Francisco G. Cigarroa, Chair of the Ford Foundation Board of Trustees, said, "We deeply value the unique perspectives Timothy and Mark will bring to the Ford Foundation and our work. Their passion, knowledge, and insights will enhance our mission in every way."

"I'm thrilled to welcome Timothy F. Geithner and Mark Bradford to the Ford Foundation Board of Trustees," said Heather Gerken, president of the Ford Foundation. "Timothy and Mark will each bring extensive expertise, distinct points of view, and deep wisdom to our organization as we begin to write the foundation's next chapter. Our new trustees will make a vital contribution to our Board as we face the urgent work of this moment."

Geithner remains active in academia as the Chair of the Program on Financial Stability and as a visiting lecturer at the Yale University School of Management. He also lends his expertise as a member of the International Rescue Committee Board of Advisors, Co-Chair of the Aspen Economic Strategy Group, and as a member of the Group of Thirty. Geithner holds a BA from Dartmouth College in Government and Asian Studies and an MA in International Economics and East Asian Studies from Johns Hopkins.

"The Ford Foundation is a great institution, with an admirable record advancing the founding ideals and aspirations of the United States," said Geithner. "It's a privilege for me to join the Board of Trustees, and to help support the Foundation's work as it continues to expand the frontiers of knowledge and of opportunity and to defend democracy and the rule of law."

Bradford's significant contributions to the arts have garnered numerous high-profile honors. Most recently, he was awarded the 2023 National Medal of Arts, the U.S. government's highest recognition for artists and arts patrons. Bradford has also been awarded a MacArthur Fellows Program grant, the Bucksbaum Award from the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the Wexner Center Residency Award. He also received a United States Artists fellowship, which was co-founded by former Ford Foundation president Susan Berresford. Today, his works are featured in the collections of major institutions worldwide, including The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Tate Modern in London, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C., and the Studio Museum in Harlem.

"It is an honor to join the Ford Foundation's board and its dynamic group of leaders," said Bradford. "I look forward to working with an organization that continues to demonstrate what thoughtful, long-term investment in the public good can make possible, and that does so with clarity, rigor, and a deep commitment to expanding opportunity for communities that have too often been overlooked."

Ford Foundation trustees are elected by the board and serve six-year terms. Trustees set broad policies relating to grantmaking, geographic focus, investments, governance, and professional standards, and they oversee independent audits. The foundation's trustees come from around the world and have extensive experience in higher education, business and finance, technology, law, government, and the nonprofit sector.

About the Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is an independent organization working to address inequality and build a future grounded in justice. For more than 85 years, it has supported visionaries on the frontlines of social change worldwide, guided by its mission to strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement. Today, with an endowment of $16 billion, the foundation has headquarters in New York and 10 regional offices across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.

SOURCE Ford Foundation