Boston Foundation announces additions of Dwight Poler and Dr. Pam Eddinger to Board of Directors

Boston – The Boston Foundation today announced that Bunker Hill Community College President Dr. Pam Eddinger and longtime Bain Capital Managing Director Dwight Poler have joined the Foundation Board of Directors, effective July 1, 2018.

Dr. Pam Eddinger

Dr. Eddinger has been President of Bunker Hill Community College since 2013, leading the state’s largest community college, with more than 13,000 students. Under her leadership, Bunker Hill was named a co-winner of Achieving the Dream’s Leah Meyer Austin Award in for its excellent work around student success, and the college has improved on a number of student success metrics. The college has worked closely with the Boston Foundation’s Success Boston college completion initiative, and on numerous other projects and initiatives designed to improve outcomes and opportunities for students and graduates across Greater Boston.

“As Bunker Hill president, Dr. Eddinger has demonstrated her strong, enthusiastic leadership and has been a valued partner in efforts to improve the outcomes for thousands of Bunker Hill students and graduates,” said Sandra Edgerley, chair of the Boston Foundation Board. “We are excited to welcome her energy, vision and determination to the Board of Directors.

Dr. Eddinger immigrated to the United States at the age of 11 and grew up in Florida. Prior to assuming her role at Bunker Hill, she served as President of Moorpark College, a 15,000-student community college based in Moorpark, CA, and held a series of senior administration roles at MassBay Community College.

She serves on a number of local and national boards. Dr. Eddinger is a member of the WGBH Board of Trustees, and on the Board of Directors of the Boston Private Industry Council, the Governing Board of EdVestors, the National Asian/Pacific Islander Council Board of Directors, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Workforce Investment Board.

Dr. Eddinger earned her master’s degree and doctorate in Modern Japanese Literature at Columbia University, and her bachelor’s degree in English from Barnard College.

Dwight Poler

Dwight Poler, Senior Advisor at Bain Capital, has until recently been based in London, where he founded Bain’s European Private Equity Business in 2000 and managed it through December 2017. Dwight joined Bain Capital in 1994 and was named a Managing Director in 1999. Prior to joining Bain Capital, Dwight was a consultant at Bain & Company where he worked in the technology, consumer products and financial services industries. Previously, he worked in the Mergers and Acquisitions department at Morgan Stanley & Co., in both New York and Tokyo, with a focus on technology deals.

While based in London, Dwight cofounded a social investment model in London called the Private Equity Foundation (PEF). Bain Capital, alongside other private equity firms, invested funds and pro bono skills through PEF toward capability building in charities that help disadvantaged young people achieve education and employment, including one of the earliest UK social impact bonds which generate returns to investors, paid by the British government, if and as desired outcomes are realized. The Poler family has held a Donor Advised Fund at the Boston Foundation since 2008.

“The Boston Foundation is very fortunate to be able to welcome Dwight Poler to the Board of Directors,” said Edgerley. “His demonstrated experience developing innovations in philanthropy and impact investment will help the Boston Foundation continue to lead the field in finding new strategies for leveraging philanthropic dollars to their greatest potential creating jobs, improving neighborhoods and strengthening our communities.

With the additions of the new members, the Boston Foundation board now consists of 20 members, chaired by Sandra Edgerley. Linda Mason is the Board’s vice chair.

The list of Board members, including their biographies and terms of service, can be found here. 

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The Boston Foundation, Greater Boston’s community foundation, is one of the largest community foundations in the nation, with net assets of more than $1 billion. In 2017, the Foundation and its donors paid $130 million in grants to nonprofit organizations and received gifts of more than $194 million. The Foundation is a close partner in philanthropy with its donors, with more than 1,000 separate charitable funds established either for the general benefit of the community or for special purposes. It also serves as a major civic leader, think tank and advocacy organization, commissioning research into the most critical issues of our time and helping to shape public policy designed to advance opportunity for everyone in Greater Boston. The Philanthropic Initiative (TPI), a distinct operating unit of the Foundation, designs and implements customized philanthropic strategies for families, foundations and corporations around the globe. For more information about the Boston Foundation and TPI, visit tbf.org or call 617-338-1700.