Marvin Schotland

I’ve been blessed to work with many passionate and generous donor families in supporting countless causes over the past 40 years of my professional leadership in philanthropy. Knowing how the work we are doing together is changing countless lives for the better is immensely inspiring.

Mr. Schotland served as president and CEO of the Jewish Community Foundation for 33 years. He became president and CEO emeritus in January 2023.

Mr. Schotland began his tenure at The Foundation in May 1989 as executive vice president after having served four years as the executive director of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Metrowest, New Jersey. He was previously executive director of the Jewish Community Foundation of Southern Arizona for two years. During his 33-year tenure at The Foundation, its assets grew from $90 million to more than $1.5 billion and approximately $2 billion was distributed in grants.

A native of Youngstown, Ohio, Mr. Schotland earned his bachelor’s degree and law degree from the University of Cincinnati. He was an assistant attorney general for the state of Ohio and was in private legal practice in Tucson, Arizona specializing in income and estate tax planning. He also has been co-adjunct professor at the University of Arizona and at Rutgers State University. Mr. Schotland received an honorary doctorate from American Jewish University in 2019.

Mr. Schotland has served as chair of the Board of Southern California Grantmakers (SCG), a regional membership association representing the full spectrum of the philanthropic community including private independent foundations, family foundations, corporate foundations and giving programs, community foundations, public foundations, private operating foundations, and individual philanthropists. He is a member of the Board of Advisors of the University of Southern California’s Center on Philanthropy and Public Policy and has served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Jewish Funders Network. He serves on the Board of Directors of 35 family foundations.

Marvin has often been quoted in the industry press and has contributed op-eds to The Washington Post, L.A. Daily News, Forward, and the Jewish Journal on topics such as family philanthropy and Jewish community giving. Schotland was named in LABJ’s 2021 LA500 list as one of the 21 most influential nonprofit leaders in Los Angeles.