After an extensive and comprehensive search, McKnight Foundation is pleased to share that Muneer Karcher-Ramos (he/him/él) has been selected as the new ደፋር እና ፍትሃዊ ማህበረሰቦች (Communities) program director.
Muneer brings more than 15 years of experience working in and with communities to create greater opportunity for many residents in our region and beyond. He joins the program at a time of great momentum, as McKnight recently reaffirmed its goal of coming together to advance a vibrant future where all Minnesotans—from the Northside to the North Shore—have shared power, prosperity, and participation.
“Since 2019, the Vibrant & Equitable Communities program, together with our many grantee partners statewide, has worked to transform existing systems and create pathways of opportunities in our increasingly diverse state,” shared McKnight president Tonya Allen.
“Muneer is an exceptional leader who has pioneered programs that have boosted economic mobility and built wealth in communities. With his deep experience in social, economic, racial, disability, climate, and wealth justice, he, along with the talented Communities program team, will continue to drive change toward the future we know is possible for all Minnesotans.”
“Muneer is an exceptional leader who has pioneered programs that have boosted economic mobility and built wealth in communities. With his deep experience in social, economic, racial, disability, climate, and wealth justice, he, along with the talented Communities program team, will continue to drive change toward the future we know is possible for all Minnesotans.”– TONYA ALLEN, PRESIDENT
Starting on March 25, Muneer will play a pivotal role in supporting Minnesota communities, collaborating with diverse stakeholders locally and nationally, and strengthening McKnight’s ability to advance durable, people-centered systems change. As program director, he will steward strong, integrated programming to champion racial and economic justice across Minnesota.
Working closely with McKnight’s senior leadership team, he will deliver on the program’s goal and strategies alongside the Communities team: Chad Schwitters, Marcq Sung, እና Katie Wehr, senior program officers; ሣራ ሃነንድነዝ እና ቶም ሜርፊ፣ የፕሮግራም መኮንኖች ፣ Paula Vazquez Alzate, program and grants associate; and Iweda Riddley, program team administrator. He will also work closely with McKnight’s president and board of directors to build collaboration and partnership, as well as across the Foundation—including with McKnight’s Midwest Climate & Energy and Arts & Culture programs, and the GroundBreak Coalition, a group of more than 40 corporate, civic, and philanthropic leaders mobilizing capital to achieve racial equity and climate readiness.
A Career Focused on Economic Mobility and Community Wealth Building
Throughout his career, Muneer secured $100+ million in private, public, and philanthropic investments towards education, housing, and economic justice. He has worked to reimagine financial systems, support grassroots movement organizing, elevate worker- and community ownership, and lead cross-sector programming and policy initiatives.
He joins McKnight from the Office of Financial Empowerment at the City of Saint Paul, where he was the founding director since 2019. Under his guidance, the city introduced transformative and nationally acclaimed initiatives to increase economic opportunity and shared ownership. These included CollegeBound Saint Paul —a children’s asset building program that has enrolled 13,000 babies and accumulated $3 million in college savings and the subsequent nationally-recognized “CollegeBound Boost” income asset demonstration project. Under his leadership, the City launched other innovative efforts including the Medical Debt Reset Initiative that’s poised to relieve $110 million in medical debt, the People’s Prosperity Pilot, and multiple guaranteed income demonstration projects. Additionally, he established the $2.5 million LOCAL Fund, supporting community wealth building by bolstering worker cooperatives and advancing shared ownership of commercial real estate.
Prior to his role with the city, Muneer served as executive director for the Saint Paul Promise Neighborhood, a cross-sector cradle-to-career education initiative focused on culturally responsive approaches. He led a strategy to deploy over $2 million in annual community investments, and designed The People’s Fellowship, a public-private wealth and asset-building initiative focused on Black communities in Saint Paul. He also helped move a housing pilot to a statewide policy focused on housing hundreds of highly mobile and unsheltered families with children across Minnesota.
Muneer is currently a board member for The ARC Minnesota, and previously served on the boards of Headwaters Foundation for Justice and Minnesota Education Equity Partnership. He is a community faculty member in the Social Justice Minor at the University of Minnesota and a fellow at the Cultural Wellness Center and the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The Minneapolis/Saint Paul Business Journal named him as a 40 under 40 honoree and the Saint Paul Foundation selected him as a Facing Race honoree.
Muneer received a master’s degree in sociology from the University of Chicago and a bachelor’s degree in political science, sociology, and social justice from the University of Minnesota. He lives in the Frogtown neighborhood of Saint Paul with his partner and three children.
“I am passionate and committed to working with and in communities to help build greater opportunity, and that has led me to this role at McKnight,” said Muneer. “I look forward to working with McKnight and its partners, moving into the next phase of this program’s work to make tangible, impactful progress that paves the way for a more vibrant and equitable future for every Minnesotan.”
To learn more about the program, visit our ደፋር እና ፍትሃዊ ማህበረሰቦች ገጽ
ስለ McKnight ዝግጅት: The McKnight Foundation, a Minnesota-based family foundation, advances a more just, creative, and abundant future where people and planet thrive. Established in 1953, the McKnight Foundation is deeply committed to advancing climate solutions in the Midwest; building an equitable and inclusive Minnesota; and supporting the arts and culture in Minnesota, neuroscience, and global food systems.
