President, The George Gund Foundation

Funders Together Board Chair

Tony Richardson became president of The George Gund Foundation in 2022. Prior to joining the Foundation, he served as executive director of The Nord Family Foundation in Amherst, OH. Before working in philanthropy, Tony held positions in the private sector, K-12 education, higher education, and government. 

In 2011, Tony was elected as a councilmember-at-large in the City of Lorain, becoming one of the youngest people elected to a citywide seat. During his second term, Tony served as chair of the police, fire, and legislative standing committee, and sponsored legislation to increase hiring goal percentages for racial minorities and women on city projects. In 2012, he served as the civic and political chair for the Lorain City Schools Levy Committee, which helped the school district pass its first new levy for operating dollars since 1992. Later that year, Tony was invited by the Obama Administration to attend a “Working Meeting on Fiscal Cliff” at the White House.

In 2017, Tony was appointed by Ohio’s Superintendent of Public Instruction to serve as chair of the Lorain Academic Distress Commission, a joint local and state committee established to turnaround the Lorain City School District. He is a recipient of Philanthropy Ohio’s 2017 Emerging Philanthropist Award, and his work has been featured in The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Stanford Social Innovation Review, and The Center for Effective Philanthropy. 

Tony currently serves as board chair for Funders Together to End Homelessness and The Center for Effective Philanthropy, respectively. He also serves as a board member for The Corella & Bertram F. Bonner Foundation. 

Tony holds a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College and a juris doctorate from The Ohio State University’s Michael E. Moritz College of Law.