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HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | August 15, 2022 23 2022 | 40 UNDER FORTY As the Hartford Foundation's director of strategic learning and evaluation, Kate Szczerbacki leads the development and management of an organization-wide, coordinated learning and evaluation unit that supports strategic planning, practice improvement and ongoing decision-making. Her work focuses on collaborating with internal colleagues, grantees and other local partners to develop rigorous and equitable evaluative approaches to better understand the strengths and needs of the Greater Hartford region and improve the Foundation's contribution to community. Miguel Vázquez Jr. is a senior development manager at NFTE, leading fundraising oper- ations with an extensive portfolio of both national and regional accounts. Vázquez Jr. has more than a decade working in the nonprofit sector and in community engage- ment driving social impact. He is also the vice president of marketing for Prospanica Connecticut, an association for Hispanic business professionals and serves as a head leader at House of Restoration Church. What's been your biggest professional accomplishment so far in your career? I went from participating in a NFTE program What's been your biggest professional accomplishment so far in your career? My most considerable achievement was collaborating with Foundation colleagues to sustain the momentum of learning efforts at the Foundation during the pandemic. We used lessons from this time to interrogate the assumptions we have about types of knowledge we value and make revisions to internal data gathering and deci- sion-making processes. How are you involved in the community? I serve on DataHaven's board of directors – a Connecticut nonprofit committed to empow- ering people to create thriving communities by ensuring access to data on wellbeing and equity. I have also volunteered at New England-area equestrian events and have participated in grassroots efforts to improve housing equity in my town. Why do you deserve to be a 40 Under Forty? • Led two successful bids for the Hartford Foundation to serve as a practicum site for a Leaders in Equitable Evaluation and Diversity scholar who implemented equi- ty-centered projects with the Foundation and partners. • Expanded the Foundation's learning and evaluation function from a one-person unit in 2019 to a three-person team in 2022. • Spearheaded the Foundation's par- ticipation in the Equitable Evaluation Initiative's Practice Partnership. • Serves on the Hartford Data Collaborative's executive board including its governance and data use priorities subcommittees. as a teenager to 15 years later, leading its development efforts for all of New England as well as managing one of the largest accounts for the organization. How are you involved in the community? I am actively involved with Prospanica CT serving as a board of director where I lead marketing and manage community events throughout the year. I also congregate at House of Restoration Church where I serve as a head leader supporting the educational and professional development of our family of faith. What do you like to do outside of work? I enjoy traveling, spending time with family and friends and trying out all the food options at Parkville Market in Hartford. Why do you deserve to be a 40 Under Forty? • Hartford native committed to helping other young people to become positive outliers like him. • Went from support staff with minimal fundraising experience to leading an entire region's development efforts under five years. • Directly contributed to fundraising more than $5 million in grants for NFTE to date. • Engaged the community with quality career and professional development initiatives through his board role at Prospanica CT. Fun Fact I prefer soft serve over hard serve ice cream, but I'll take either any day. Theme Song "Hard Work" — U.S. Army Airborne Rangers Miguel Vázquez Jr. Age: 31 Company: Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) Title: Senior Development Manager, New England & Mid-Atlantic Number of years with current company: 5 Town where I live: Hartford Town where I work: Hartford College: Babson College Highest degree: Bachelor's in business administration The Hartford Foundation congratulates our colleague Kate Szczerbacki and all of the HBJ 40 Under Forty honorees. We are grateful for your dedication to strengthening the Greater Hartford community. To learn more about our work, visit: hfpg.org/joinus Kate Szczerbacki Age: 39 Company: The Hartford Foundation for Public Giving Title: Director of Strategic Learning & Evaluation Number of years with current company: 4 Town where I live: Hamden Town where I work: Hartford College: The Heller School for Social Policy at Brandeis University; University at Buf- falo School of Law, Alfred University Highest degree: Ph.D. in social policy/JD