CSUSB alumna named IECF’s First African American board chair

Cal State San Bernardino alumna and founder of Voice Media Ventures Paulette Brown-Hinds ’90 has been named the first African American to chair the Inland Empire Community Foundation’s Board of Directors.

Brown-Hinds, who is also the second-generation publisher of the VOICE and Black Voice News, joined the IECF Board in 2014, having recently served as vice chair.

The foundation also appointed three new officers: vice chair Nefertiti Long, a member of the CSUSB Philanthropic Foundation board and chief operating officer of Alta Loma Enterprises; chief financial officer Kathy Johnson, vice president of Forensic Accounting at J.S. Held, LLC, owner of CPA Forensic Plus Inc., and an accounting adjunct professor at CSUSB; and secretary, Jeremy Hobbs, president of the Western Wind Foundation. IECF also welcomed new board member Ann Sheffer, chair of the Palm Springs Public Arts Commission.

Founded in 1941, the Inland Empire Community Foundation is the oldest and largest community foundation serving the inland region. The foundation works with stakeholders from across the Inland Empire to understand, address and resource important issues. Working under a framework of Equity, Economy, Education and Environment, IECF supports collaborative processes and investments to affect lasting change.