Tracy Sturdivant, the Ms. Foundation’s next leader, wants to expand the feminist funder’s coalition

NEW YORK (AP) — It is rare, the Ms. Foundation’s next leader acknowledged, for a Black woman to take the helm of a major nonprofit from another Black woman. It is even rarer, she noted, for that organization to be financially healthy.

And yet that is the position Tracy Sturdivant will enter when she succeeds Teresa Younger as the president and CEO of the first national philanthropy run by and for women. The Ms. Foundation introduced Sturdivant on Tuesday at its annual New York City gala, where feminists such as #MeToo founder Tarana Burke were honored.

The foundation is “not in crisis,” but “ready for what’s to come” with Sturdivant in charge, Younger said in a statement shared ahead of the announcement. The foundation built a $100 million-plus endowment and explicitly centered women and girls of color during her tenure.

With that strong footing Sturdivant sees an opportunity to expand the coalition of people who see gender justice as their charge, too. As many funders disinvest from Blac...