Jill Schatz

Jill Schatz joined the Refugees International board in 2026. She is a philanthropic executive with nearly four decades of experience in foundation governance, grantmaking strategy, and the design and scaling of high-impact social programs. As the Founder and President of the Serimus Foundation and a veteran trustee of multiple boards, she brings a rare combination of fiduciary discipline, entrepreneurial instinct, and deep field knowledge earned across the United States, Central Europe, and East Africa. Jill brings to board service a disciplined governance perspective and a track record of building lasting institutions. She is a collaborative leader who asks hard questions, thinks across time horizons, and understands how philanthropic capital can be deployed for durable systems change and maximum impact. She has a commitment to the open communication, continuous improvement, thoughtful testing and implementation of new ideas, characteristic of a learning organization.