Michael Marsicano, Ph.D. President and Chief Executive Officer

Michael Marsicano is President and Chief Executive Officer of Foundation For The Carolinas. The Charlotte-based community foundation advances philanthropy by serving donors, increasing charitable giving and improving communities through civic leadership initiatives. The Foundation currently manages assets of more than $660 million and holds more than 1,700 charitable funds.

Michael joined the Foundation in 1999 after serving as President and CEO of the Arts & Science Council in Charlotte, North Carolina for 10 years. During his tenure, this United Arts Fund became the nation’s highest in per capita annual giving and evolved into one of the largest endowed arts councils in the United States. Prior to his work with the Arts & Science Council, Michael served as the Executive Director of the Durham Arts Council and Royal Arts Center in Durham, North Carolina.

Michael has been active in several national and local organizations. He has chaired the boards of the National Assembly of Local Arts Agencies and the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and served on the boards of Americans for the Arts, the Kenan Institute for the Arts, Community Foundations of America, UNC Charlotte Foundation and the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce. He currently serves on the boards of , Queens University of Charlotte, Charlotte Center City Partners, the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, the United Way Legacy Foundation and the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University.

In 2008, Michael was selected by the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce as the first recipient of the Innovator of the Year award. Also in 2008, Michael was listed second in Charlotte Magazine’s “50 Most Powerful People in Town” issue. He has previously received honors from the Urban League of Central Carolinas for building economic empowerment and bridging racial divides and from the Latin American Coalition for leading the Foundation’s commitment to the region’s Latino community. Michael is a recipient of the Winthrop University Medal of Honor in the Arts and the national Selina Roberts Ottum Award, given annually by Americans for the Arts. For the past two years, Michael has been invited to participate in the National Arts Policy Roundtable in Sundance, Utah.

A native of New York, Michael received his Bachelor of Science, Masters of Education and Doctor of Philosophy from Duke University. He is married to the Reverend Leslie Montfort Marsicano, also a graduate of Duke University. Leslie is an ordained Methodist Minister serving as Associate Dean for Academic Administration. The Marsicanos have three sons.

July 2009