Jill Iscol, author, philanthropist, Hillary adviser, to speak at Heller on Thursday

Jill Iscol

Jill Iscol — author, philanthropist and longtime adviser to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton — will discuss her recently released book Hearts on Fire: Twelve Stories of Today's Visionaries Igniting Idealism into Action, in a lecture at the Heller School on Thursday, March 29 at 6 p.m.

Co-sponsored by the Eli J. Segal Citizen Leadership Program and the Sillerman Center for the Advancement of Philanthropy, the event titled “An Evening with Philanthropist and Author, Jill Iscol, and ‘Changemaker’ Jacob Lief” is free and open to the public.


Lief, President and co-founder of the Ubuntu Education Fund in South Africa, and one of Iscol’s examples in Hearts on Fire will also attend Thursday’s lecture. The fund built an integrated medical, health, educational and social services system that provides resources for orphaned and at risk children. The mission of Lief’s program is to support the development of vulnerable children from an early age through higher education and employment opportunities.

“In a community built on the ideals of social justice, we welcome these two citizen leaders to discuss the power of education as a tool for advancing economic development,” Segal Program Director Toni Schwarzenbach said. “Grounded in values of charitable giving, their careers demonstrate the tangible impact of a life dedicated to service.”

Iscol’s book captures the story of 14 change makers in the non-profit sector and explores the global impact of philanthropy. She is the President of the IF Hummingbird Foundation, a family foundation established in 1989 to support domestic and international efforts to strengthen democracy and reduce social, economic, and educational inequalities.

For 20 years, Iscol has focused on supporting organizations that promote and develop young philanthropic leaders. A Democratic activist, she served as Co-Chair for the New York Finance Committee on Hillary Clinton’s Senate Campaign and as National Vice-Chair for the 2008 Finance Committee on her presidential campaign.

In 2009, Lief was selected as an Aspen Institute Global Fellow and in 2010 the World Economic Forum selected him as a Young Global Leader.



For more information and to RSVP, contact Lainey Rabinow at 781-736-3772 or by email.