Shawn Escoffery is the Executive Director of the Roy and Patricia Disney Family Foundation, where he leads a team committed to social justice and addressing the historical inequities that plague many lower-income communities. Since joining the Foundation 2018, Shawn has led the organization through a strategy revisioning process, created a fellowship for someone who was formerly impacted by the Justice System, and launched an Impact Investing portfolio with a 10% carve-out of the endowment. The Foundation now focuses on Criminal Justice Reform, Environmental Justice, and Affordable Housing Preservation with a trust-based approach that is centered in place and emphasizes lasting partnerships as well as capacity building. With assets exceeding $120 million, Shawn oversees a $5 million annual grantmaking budget and is responsible for sourcing impact investments ranging from $250,000 to $1 million aimed at advancing racial and gender equity. Prior to joining RPDFF, Shawn directed the Inclusive Economies portfolio at the Surdna Foundation – a nationally focused family foundation with over $1 billion in assets. In this role, Shawn worked to support the development of robust and sustainable economies that include a wide range of businesses, equitable economic policy, and access to quality jobs. Shawn managed a $9.5 million annual grantmaking budget and an impact investing portfolio over $10 million. As an urban planner with over 20 years of experience, Shawn has worked on community economic development and affordable housing projects across the country. Shawn holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and English Literature from Rutgers University and a Master’s of City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He also holds certificates in Communications and International Relations, Urban Redevelopment, and Effective Leadership from Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Duke University, respectively. Shawn currently sits on the board of directors of The Funders Network and Hispanics in Philanthropy.

At CSUN, Lily was a student organizer. She co-founded Revolutionary Scholars and Revolutionary Scholars Project, the precursor to CSUN’s Project Rebound, which she helped establish and manage. Her organizing efforts significantly contributed to the program’s statewide expansion, enhancing support for formerly incarcerated students across California. In her community work, Lily has been a dedicated organizer with various entities, including A New Way of Life and All of Us or None, where she played a key role in several policy efforts, including the successful campaign to pass the Ban the Box legislation in Los Angeles County. Lily serves on the Huntington Library Family Advisory Council and is a NRCAT U.S. Prisons Program Advisory Council member. She is also a 2024 Rockwood Leadership Institute Higher Education in Prison Fellow.

Frida Hatami joined the Roy and Patricia Disney Family Foundation in 2015 as its first Grants Manager. She has been instrumental in overseeing the effort to formalize processes and procedures, and to develop a state-of-the-art grants database. She is responsible for working with grantee partners, grantseekers, and Foundation staff to manage the grantmaking processes. Frida is also responsible for leading the Foundation’s emerging Environmental Justice portfolio, including identifying new partnership opportunities with organizations on the frontline of environmental fights and addressing capacity challenges of the field. Frida brings many years of experience in both philanthropy and the nonprofit sector, including her previous role at Annenberg Foundation, where she helped streamline the Foundation’s responsive grantmaking process and managed a $5.0M portfolio of several grants. She also spent time at the California Endowment, a $6.0B healthcare conversion foundation, and with Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles providing support to two major programs Family Violence Project and At Home Services. Frida holds a Master’s degree in Public Health from California State University, Northridge.

Clara Steele is a Program Officer at the Roy and Patricia Disney Family Foundation, where she provides strategic development for the Foundation’s core program areas: Criminal Justice Reform, Affordable Housing, and Environmental Justice. She works closely with community leaders, nonprofit organizations, public agencies, and fellow funders to build partnerships, advance community-driven solutions, and support systems-level change across Los Angeles and New Orleans.

Born and raised in Altadena, California, Clara’s commitment to social impact was shaped by her deep connection to community and inspired by her mother, Nancy Steele, founder of Arroyos & Foothills Conservancy. From an early age, she witnessed the power of the nonprofit sector to protect local resources, mobilize residents, and address community challenges. Following the Eaton Fire, Clara has helped guide the Foundation’s efforts to support an equitable recovery in Altadena.

Since joining the Foundation in 2017, Clara has helped shape grantmaking strategies, launch participatory grantmaking initiatives, and foster cross-sector partnerships that strengthen grassroots leadership and community power. She is particularly passionate about engaging youth and community members directly in funding decisions and believes that the people closest to a challenge are often best positioned to help solve it. Clara holds a BA in History from Occidental College and an MS in Positive Organization Development and Change from Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management, where she graduated with honors.

Lorenzo Vicente is an experienced program manager, policy researcher and aspiring impact investor. He has committed his professional career to non profit work starting in the Bronx, NY working at organizations dedicated to expanding opportunity and providing quality education, programming and services for the youth. As Philanthropy Fellow at the Roy and Patricia Disney Foundation he provides programmatic and operational support in grantmaking and impact investing. 

Prior to joining the foundation, Lorenzo served as Manager of Strategic Initiatives at the National Urban League (NUL) where he assisted in managing a host of projects and programs on the Equitable Justice and Strategic Initiatives Division. He assisted in the development and management of the Urban Expungement Program, which since 2024 has provided free record relief services to over 3000 clients in Ohio. Lorenzo also assisted in managing NUL’s civic engagement campaign ‘Reclaim Your Vote’ by supporting affiliates on the ground, leading text/phone banking events and engaging young voters on college campuses. He has also co-lead the development of the National Urban League’s Youth Civics Curriculum which will serve to fill the gaps of civic knowledge in underserved communities.

Lorenzo graduated from College of the Holy Cross with a double major in International Studies and Spanish. As a National Urban Fellow, he is currently pursuing a Master’s in Policy Management at Georgetown University. His ultimate goal is to launch New York City’s first impact investing fund dedicated strictly to improving the quality of life and economic empowerment of the South Bronx.