Ted Harrison, President
Prior to founding Commonweal Conservancy, Ted served as a
senior vice president for the Trust for Public Land,
a national land conservation organization. Since 1986,
Ted has helped facilitate more than $150 million worth
of open space and community-building real estate transactions.
These projects range from large-scale urban open space
and watershed protection projects to historic preservation
and wild lands conservation throughout the Southwest
and California. As Commonweal Conservancy's president,
he oversees the organization's portfolio of conservation-based
community development transactions, develops partner
relationships, and supports the creative capabilities
of staff. Ted earned a B.A. in political science and
anthropology from the University of California at Berkeley,
an M.A. in city and regional planning from the University
of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and an advanced management
development program degree from the Graduate School of
Design at Harvard University.
John Hesse II, Project Manager
John facilitates the design and management of Commonweal
Conservancy's conservation-based community development
transaction portfolio. John has had experience in corporate
and real estate lending at BayBanks (now Fleet Bank) in
Burlington, MA; entrepreneurial experience with two software
startups in San Francisco, CA; and real estate investment,
finance, and development experience with Capstone Advisors
in San Diego, CA. John recently received his master's degree
in real estate from Cornell University with a concentration
in sustainable development. He earned a bachelor's degree
in economics from the University of Richmond, VA, in 1993.
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Kate Drahn, Public Affairs Manager
Kate manages Commonweal Conservancy's public relations functions
and oversees the organization's administrative activities.
Before helping to launch Commonweal Conservancy, Kate spent
21 years at the Trust for Public Land. In many roles and
capacities, Kate advanced TPL's transactional, fundraising,
public affairs, marketing, and board development work.
She holds a B.A. in social science from the University
of Redlands and is pursuing a master's degree in counseling
from Southwestern College in Santa Fe.
Gretchen Grogan, Project Associate/Development Coordinator
As development coordinator, Gretchen assists the president
to identify and cultivate individuals and foundations interested
in supporting Commonweal Conservancy's conservation-based
community development work. As project associate, Gretchen
helps implement the organization's community development
transactions. Gretchen brings over 15 years experience
in business development, marketing, and project management
in publishing and the performing arts to her work at Commonweal
Conservancy. She received her B.A. in economics and fine
arts from Georgetown University and is currently pursuing
a graduate planning degree through the Community and Regional
Planning department at the University of New Mexico.
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