Shelley Trott is Executive Director of the Kenneth Rainin Foundation. She works closely with the CEO to implement the Foundation’s vision and lead the organization in fulfilling its mission.
Since joining the Foundation in 2009 as one of its first employees, she has held multiple leadership roles, playing an integral role in our evolution. Shelley was Chief Program Officer from 2021-2024, overseeing program areas, grants management and communications. She fostered collaboration throughout the organization, led our evaluation and learning initiative, and worked with Rainin Foundation leaders to create our first Program-Related Investment Fund to further leverage the Foundation’s resources for public good.
Her extensive nonprofit and philanthropy experience and past work as a dancer and media artist have shaped her entrepreneurial approach. From 2009-2021, under Shelley’s leadership, the Arts Program established the Foundation’s reputation for taking smart risks and gained national recognition for its visionary approach. The Community Arts Stabilization Trust (CAST), the nonprofit she played a key role in founding, highlights her creativity and innovation in securing lasting and affordable spaces for arts and culture organizations in San Francisco and Oakland. This model has exceeded scale and replication expectations, with the potential for both national and international impact.
Shelley was named a 2023 Change Leaders in Philanthropy Fellow and received the prestigious Robert W. Scrivner Award from the Council on Foundations in 2014 for outstanding creativity in grantmaking. She is currently Board President of the Community Arts Stabilization Trust (CAST), an organization she helped launch, and is the Founding Board President of Immersive Arts Alliance.
