Dashiell (Dash) Patterson is the grandson of Kenneth Rainin. He was appointed to the Board in 2021, signaling the integration of another generation of the Rainin family into the Kenneth Rainin Foundation.
After a brief internship with the Foundation in 2016, Dash took on a larger role as a junior board member until 2021. In this role he grew his understanding of philanthropy, gained a greater sense of the Bay Area’s unique arts and culture ecosystem, and built on his own K-12 experience to understand high-quality early education in Oakland. Like his mother, Jen Rainin, grandfather and uncle, Dash also suffers from Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). His personal experience with IBD is an important connection to the Foundation’s Health grantmaking. He shared his story with researchers at our 2021 Innovations Symposium.
As a college student, Dash brings a unique generational perspective to the Board. He is pursuing a Global Studies major with a focus on Finance at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He aims to gain a deeper understanding of international economies and the impact of rapid financial transactions. He is also passionate about confronting climate change and understanding what he and other individuals can do to stop it. He is an active member of one of his university’s environmental organizations.
