Forrest graduated from Clemson University in 1994 with a BA in Biological Sciences. Currently, she works for the Coastal Community Foundation of South Carolina (CCF) as the Vice President of Grantmaking and Community Leadership. Forrest will lead CCF’s grantmaking and scholarship programs, strengthen and grow the foundation’s relationships within the community, while encouraging diversity, equity, and inclusiveness. She has more than a decade of experience in the nonprofit field. She was the Senior Program Director of Equity Centered Leadership and Philanthropy for MDC, a legacy nonprofit committed to systems change in the South. There she directed leadership development initiatives for nonprofits and foundations working toward collaborative, human-centered, approaches to inclusive economic mobility in the region. Prior to her role at MDC, Forrest was the Lowcountry Program Director for the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation where she managed grantmaking, communications, advocacy, and partnerships for the foundation’s three program areas in South Carolina. She is a Furman University DLI Riley Fellow and a Liberty Fellow. Before her nonprofit work began, Forrest had a 16-year journalism career with national broadcast outlets MSNBC, NBC News, and CBS News.
