Melanie Lundquist is an activist philanthropist whose voice is as fearless as her philanthropic work. Melanie and her husband, Richard, have appeared five times on The Philanthropy 50, the annual list of America’s 50 most generous philanthropists compiled by the Chronicle of Philanthropy. They are signatories of The Giving Pledge. Their gifts have helped transform non-charter K-12 public education and health care delivery, spur biomedical research and innovation, and propel efforts to combat climate change and save democracy. Melanie is a much-sought-after speaker at conferences and events, including Aspen, Bloomberg, Milken and Politico – a true change agent who talks openly and authentically about “big bet,” maximum-impact philanthropy done with a focus to bring solutions and change to scale. Melanie is a member of the University of Southern California President’s Leadership Council and vice chair of the Board at the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools. Melanie was named Philanthropist of the Year in 2019 by the Los Angeles Business Journal for driving systemic change. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Southern California and a doctor of humane letters from McPherson College.