News

Benedum Referenced in Federal Reserve Bank Report

Bringing Broadband to Rural America
Alexander Marré, Author
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
Community Scope, December 2020
Richmond Federal Reserve published a report on Broadband in Rural America, read the full report here.

Jim Denova Retiring from Benedum June 2021

The Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation announces the retirement of esteemed Program Director and Vice President, Jim Denova, effective June 30, 2021.
“Jim Denova has been essential to Benedum’s work over the last twenty years. Everyone knows Jim!” said President Jen Giovannitti. Dr. Denova joined the Foundation on January 1, 2000 as Senior Program Officer for Southwestern Pennsylvania. In his twenty years with the Foundation, he has worked with grantees throughout West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania to support and advance strategies in education, workforce, and economic development. In 2007 he became Vice President and assumed responsibility for regional planning, staff support to the President, …

Michael Benedum Remains A Pioneer

The Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation was delighted to learn that Christa A. Dotson, of Northeast Natural Energy in Morgantown, nominated Michael Benedum, posthumously, for the American Association of Professional Landmen (“AAPL”) Pioneer Award.
The AAPL is a nationwide professional organization for landmen working in the oil and gas industry. As a member of the AAPL and the local chapter, Michael Late Benedum Chapter, Christa took the initiative to nominate Michael Benedum for the AAPL’s Pioneer Award.
Christa alerted us that on June 18, 2020 at the 2020 AAPL Annual Meeting, Michael Benedum was posthumously selected as the winner of this year’s Pioneer Award. …

COVID-19 Overview

Approaching $6.5 Million in Response Grants
In our 75 years of serving West Virginia and Southwestern Pennsylvania, the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation has worked carefully with our grantees during times of war recovery, economic volatility and community crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic is raising new concerns that will undoubtedly affect many of our grantees who will need to navigate the future in a new way.
The Benedum Foundation has been reaching out to our vast network to see how we can best help. Many of the fundamental organizations that work statewide as core intermediaries are stepping up to meet this crisis head on. …

Rural Health Leader Larry Rhodes, M.D. Joins the Board of the Benedum Foundation

PITTSBURGH (September 17, 2019) – Larry A. Rhodes, M.D., a pediatric cardiologist and one of the nation’s leading advocates for rural children’s health, has been elected to the Board of Trustees of the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation. He will join the board on January 1, 2020. He replaces Robert B. Walker, M.D., who has stepped down after 11 years of service on the Foundation’s Board of Trustees. As Trustee Emeritus, Dr. Walker will continue his commitment to the region and the Foundation.
Dr. Rhodes has served as a Professor of Pediatrics in the West Virginia University School of Medicine since 2005 and is the founding director of the University’s Institute for Community and Rural Health. …

Benedum Foundation Names Jennifer Giovannitti as President

PITTSBURGH (August 13, 2018) – A community development manager for the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and nationally known policy expert on rural development strategies has been named the first woman president of the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation. Jennifer Giovannitti, a Pennsylvania native who has worked extensively in West Virginia, will succeed William P. “Pat” Getty in mid-October.
Ms. Giovannitti, 48, currently leads strategic programs and community-based initiatives, most notably in community investment, human capital, and access to credit and capital, for the Fed’s Fifth District, which includes Virginia and West Virginia. She emphasizes the role of data-driven decision-making in regional projects. …