CEO Foundation Appoints Madison Native as Next Executive Director

The Children’s Educational Opportunity Foundation of Connecticut (CEOCT) will soon have new leadership. Nicole Talmadge, most recently serving as Director of Development at The Country School in Madison, has been named the next Executive Director for CEOCT beginning this month. Talmadge will be tasked with growing the infrastructure of this long-standing foundation, increasing the number of scholarships awarded to CT’s children.

“Honored to lead this transformative foundation, I’m ready to champion the CEO’s mission to give the children of Connecticut equal access to quality education,” Talmadge said. “With a strong endowment, one of my first initiatives is to establish a formal individual giving program so Children’s Educational Opportunity Foundation can explore the expansion of the number of Connecticut areas and families served, " Talmadge shared. “The number of applications the CEO receives each year is often more than twice the number of available scholarships. It’s not the highly talented, traditionally underserved children who receive scholarships who are on my mind, but those who qualify and don’t, simply because of lack of funds. My goal is to ensure all children have equal access to high quality education.”

While lifelong Madison native Talmadge has been at The Country School for six years, her commitment to fundraising began more than a decade ago when she founded the now sunsetted Outrun38, Inc. During the fitness based Outrun’s peak years, Talmadge raised more than $100,000 in 12 countries with 6,300 followers to support the Winchester Clinic at Yale New Haven Hospital and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Talmadge will replace Interim Executive Director, Founder Dr. Lew Andrews, who will continue serving as Chair of the Board of Directors. “The hiring committee was impressed with Nicole’s energetic presence and professionalism. She brings experience in public and private education, organizational leadership, and extensive success in fundraising and development. We feel lucky to have found one person who understands all our needs,” Andrews said.

An East Hartford resident and CEO parent remarked, “Our CEO scholarships have helped all of my children a great deal. My oldest is now on her way to get her Master’s.”

Children’s Educational Opportunity Foundation of Connecticut (CEO) is a non-profit leader in providing equal access to K-8 accredited private schools by awarding one-half the tuition, up to a maximum of $2,100 each year. CECO is one of only 15 such foundations in the country to serve poor families in this way. Parents, who qualify with an income at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Income level, are responsible for the remaining tuition. Currently, they must also reside in Bridgeport, East Hartford, Hartford, New Haven, or Waterbury.

CEO was founded in 1995 by Dr. Andrews who was inspired by a similar foundation in Albany, NY, which offered private elementary school scholarships to children from poor families. Over the past 27 years, CEO itself has awarded more than $22 Million to more than 10,000 high achieving, underserved children. Its alumni have gone on to attend Harvard and many other colleges that might otherwise have been out of their reach. Learn more at https://www.ceoct.org/ or contact Nicole directly at Nicole.Talmadge@ceoct.org.