Berkeley, California – January 17, 2023 – The CARESTAR Foundation announces the addition of a second program officer to its grantmaking staff with the promotion of Sedella Jefferson.
In her new role, Sedella will oversee the Community Voices portfolio and will be responsible for ensuring that all of the Foundation’s grantmaking embraces and reflects a trust-based philanthropy approach. Additionally, she will also continue to oversee the technical side of grants administration to ensure ongoing operational improvements to the team and best-practice use of technology across the organization.
“For the past year, Sedella has been a significant member of our team, involved in everything from strategic planning, stakeholder engagement, and grant program administration,” said Tanir Ami, chief executive officer of CARESTAR.
“During a key period of growth and maturity for the Foundation, we’re excited to add to our grantmaking staff, and equally thrilled about the passion, thoughtfulness, and enthusiasm Sedella will bring to her new role.”
Sedella joined CARESTAR in early 2022 as a part-time grant administrator. Her professional experience includes grantmaking and foundation relations, teaching, and working with youth development organizations. As a passionate advocate for women and children’s rights, Sedella has worked at the state and national level to ensure child welfare policies are equitable and centered on positive outcomes for foster youth. She is committed to providing education and policy resources to communities so that they can harness their own power and strength to influence public opinion and government action.
“I am thrilled to engage with organizations across the state of California and help to elevate community voice and power,” said Sedella. “I firmly believe that partnering with community-based organizations gives funders better insight into the changes needed to transform emergency and prehospital care ensuring an equitable, unified, and compassionate experience for all.”
Sedella holds a BA in literature and world languages from the University of Arkansas.
About the CARESTAR Foundation
The CARESTAR Foundation is a philanthropic organization reimagining emergency and prehospital care in California to elevate community voice and power, build a movement, and be a catalyst for systems change. CARESTAR partners with innovators to enable strong and meaningful work transforming the field of emergency and prehospital care so all Californians can receive equitable, unified, compassionate care where and when they need it. The organization was founded in 2017 as a result of the sale of CALSTAR (California Shock Trauma Air Rescue), an air ambulance company based in Northern California. CARESTAR honors CALSTAR’S legacy and lifesaving work in the field of emergency and trauma transport and care, while centering racial equity in both its grantmaking and its operations. Connect with the CARESTAR Foundation on LinkedIn, or visit us at www.carestarfoundation.org.