Emily Tow is the president of The Tow Foundation, a family foundation that supports visionary leaders and nonprofit organizations to find and enact innovative solutions to persistent inequality.
Emily joined the Foundation’s Board of Directors in 1990, two years after its inception, and has served as the Foundation’s president since 1995.
Under Emily’s leadership, what began as a way for her family to give back to the community has grown into a well-established organization with more than $24 million in annual giving and a reputation for forging deep and long-lasting relationships with grantees. As president, Emily upholds the Tow family legacy by advancing the strategic direction of the Foundation and engaging the next generation of family members in the work.
Emily’s commitment to the Foundation’s impact areas – equity and justice, medicine and public health, arts and culture, higher education, and civic engagement – extends far beyond her role as president. She is a trustee of New York Public Radio and The Marshall Project and serves on the Advisory Committee of the American Theatre Wing. She was appointed by New York’s governor to serve on the New York State Juvenile Justice Advisory Group. Emily advances the Foundation’s priorities through her engagement with numerous other local, state and national committees and coalitions. She also formerly served as board chair of Philanthropy New York and as a trustee of Barnard College.
Emily speaks nationally and internationally about the Foundation’s work, its commitment to advocacy as a key to achieving social change, and the value of family philanthropy. She has received numerous honors and awards, including the Connecticut Council for Philanthropy’s John H. Filer Award for leadership in promoting private action for the public good and the Fairfield County Community Foundation’s Anne S. Leonhardt award for philanthropic vision in promoting women’s economic progress and equity.
Emily earned her B.A. in history from Barnard College. She received an honorary doctorate of criminal justice degree from The University of New Haven in 2017.