Education Director Wendy Puriefoy to Leave Barr

I am writing to share the news that Wendy Puriefoy has decided to leave the Barr Foundation at the end of February.

Wendy joined Barr a year ago as director of education. In her time with us, she sharpened our work with the Boston Public Schools, made significant investments in several major partners, and helped us all better understand how state and national education reform affects our local efforts. She also began working to outline a visioning process for a fundamental redesign of American education. The deeper Wendy got into this latter piece of work, the stronger her desire grew to devote herself to it full time, and to do so from a more national platform than Barr can presently provide.

With Jim Canales joining us as president this May, we do not have immediate plans to launch a search for a new education director. As we move forward at Barr and as we learn more about Wendy’s next steps, we will do our best to communicate them, including via Barr’s website.

Wendy and I first worked together more than twenty years ago at The Boston Foundation. She has been one of my mentors and role models, and she has been a wonderful companion and adviser to me during my time as interim executive director at Barr. I am grateful that her warm presence and bold ideas will remain with us as she seeks the right home for her future work.

Please join all of us in wishing Wendy well in her next adventure.