Turrell Fund Champions

The Turrell Champion Award is given to individuals who demonstrate the furthering of the Turrell Fund Vision, Mission and Values in important and lasting ways.

We invite you to meet some of our recent Champion Award recipients:

Cecilia Zalkind

Advocates for Children of New Jersey

Ceil Zalkind is the former President/CEO of Advocates for Children of New Jersey.  Her 25 years in leadership roles at ACNJ have helped produce key policy advances in child welfare, early care and education and health care in New Jersey. She has led important coalitions such as the Early Care and Education Coalition and the New Jersey BUILD initiative that have advanced high-quality early care and education in the state.

Katherine Stoehr

New Jersey Department of Children and Families

Katie Stoehr is the Deputy Commissioner of Programs and Services for the Department of Children and Families. She has served in diverse leadership roles at various child and family serving agencies and nonprofits, with a focus on coaching and training, technical assistance, research, strategic and programmatic support, managing child welfare reform initiatives, and implementing evidenced based programs.

Senator M. Teresa Ruiz

New Jersey Senate Majority Leader, District 29

Senator Ruiz is currently the New Jersey Senate Majority Leader.  She serves on several Committees, including Legislative Oversight, Joint Budget Oversight, Economic Justice and Equal Employment, and Budget and Appropriations.  She has spearheaded countless initiatives in early childhood on behalf of children and families in the state.

Verna Gray

The Gray Charter School

Miss Gray founded and opened The Gray Charter School in Newark, New Jersey on September 5, 2000 at the urging of parents who wanted true choice in public education for their children. She trained dedicated teachers who believed in making every child an achiever. Although The Gray Charter School is a public school, Miss Gray, who is an education expert, runs the school like an elite private school. She truly is making a difference in children’s lives.

Junius Williams

Center for Education and Juvenile Justice

Junius Williams is a nationally recognized attorney, musician, educator and independent thinker who has been at the forefront of the Civil Rights and Human Rights Movements in this country for decades. He is a Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Economic Research and Policy in Washington DC; Community Fellow at the Newark Public Library; and has been named the Official Newark Historian by Newark Mayor Ras Baraka. He is also the host of the podcast, Everything’s Political, which examines social issues and activism in the 21st century.

Past Recipients

Father Ed Leahy

St. Benedict’s Preparatory School

Judith Griffin

The Ophelia J. Berry Fund

Ketty Michel

Harmony Day Care Center

Stewart Campbell

Cope Center

Jeremy Johnson

Newark Public Library

Julie Cadwallader-Staub

Burlington School District, VT

Mary Burns

YMCA, Greater Burlington

Kathy Burke

Community Day Nursery

Bridget Turner

Precious Littles

Larry Tamburri

Newark School of the Arts

Blanche Podhajski

Stern Center for Language and Learning

Kay Hendon

The Nicholson Foundation

Sign up for our Mailing List