Dena Blank Kimball is the daughter of Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank and his former wife, Diana Blank. Kimball is executive director of the Atlanta-based Kendeda Fund, a left-leaning foundation that was founded by her mother. ¹ Kimball and her husband Josh also sit on the board of the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation. ^{2 3}

Career

Kimball was tapped by her mother to run the Kendeda Fund. ⁴ Kimball joined the Kendeda Fund in 2014, ⁵ but in 2013 was identified as an advisor to that fund. ⁶ She previously held senior roles at Teach for America. ⁷

Kimball is also the former executive director of GirlVentures, ⁸ a California-based organization that promotes left-leaning causes, including social emotional learning, to girls as young as ten. The group defines girls as “cis girls, trans girls, non-binary youth, gender non-conforming youth, gender queer youth, and any girl-identified youth.” ⁹

Kimball served as Chair of RedefinED Atlanta. ¹⁰ That organization blames systemic racism for the achievement gap in Atlanta’s schools. ¹¹ She was included in Atlanta Magazine’s 2022 Atlanta 500, which recognizes the most influential Atlanta-based individuals in various fields. ¹²

She holds degrees from Emory University and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. ¹³

Philanthropy

In an April 2022 interview with Inside Philanthropy, Kimball confirmed that the Kendeda Fund will cease operations at the end of 2023, in keeping with the wishes of her mother. ¹⁴ She outlined the fund’s commitment to “racial equity” and embraced the calls of those agitating for philanthropists to be “uncomfortable.” ¹⁵

Kimball penned an op-ed in 2019 in The Chronicle of Philanthropy, in which she called for the inclusion of contraception, abortion, and “gender diversity,” among other things, into international efforts to combat the scourge of child marriage. ¹⁶

Political Activity

Kimball has donated to Democratic candidates for office, especially in her home state of Georgia. Senators Raphael Warnock (D-GA) and Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Representative Lucy McBath (D-GA), and former Senate candidate Michelle Nunn have all received contributions from Kimball, as has Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). ¹⁷

1. “Dena Kimball: Executive Director and Fund Advisor for Girls’ Rights.” The Kendeda Fund. Accessed July 2, 2022. https://kendedafund.org/team-member/dena-kimball/.
2. “Who We Are.” Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation. Accessed July 2, 2022. https://blankfoundation.org/trustee/dena-kimball/.
3. “Who We Are.” Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation. Accessed July 2, 2022. https://blankfoundation.org/trustee/josh-kimball/.
4. Saporta, Maria. “A Longtime Anonymous Donor Reveals Her Identity.” SaportaReport. September 24, 2015.

   https://saportareport.com/a-longtime-anonymous-donor-reveals-her-identity/sections/abcarticles/maria_saporta/

5. “Dena Kimball: Executive Director and Fund Advisor for Girls’ Rights.” The Kendeda Fund. Accessed July 2, 2022. https://kendedafund.org/team-member/dena-kimball/.
6. “ Kendeda Fund Awards $23 Million to Help End Child Marriage in South Asia.” Philanthropy News Digest. August 28, 2013. https://philanthropynewsdigest.org/news/kendeda-fund-awards-23-million-to-help-end-child-marriage-in-south-asia.
7.  “Interview with Dena Kimball, Executive Director of the Kendeda Fund.” Equity for Children. April 2014. http://equityforchildren.org/2015/04/approaches-to-equity-interview-with-dena-kimball-executive-director-of-the-kendeda-fund/.
8. “Interview with Dena Kimball, Executive Director of the Kendeda Fund.” Equity for Children. April 2014. http://equityforchildren.org/2015/04/approaches-to-equity-interview-with-dena-kimball-executive-director-of-the-kendeda-fund/.
9. “Adventure. Discovery. Action.” GirlVentures. Accessed July 2, 2022. https://www.girlventures.org/homepage-mission.
10. “Our Team.” RedefinED Atlanta. Accessed July 2, 2022. https://redefinedatlanta.org/who-we-are/our-team/.
11. Small, Byron E. “Q&A With Ed Chang, a 2021 Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Awards Honoree.” Atlanta Business ChronicleNovember 6, 2021. https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2021/11/06/q-a-ed-chang-2021-diversity-equity-inclusion.html.
12. “2022 Atlanta 500: Religion, Nonprofits, & Advocacy.” Atlanta Magazine. Atlanta Magazine, February 10, 2022. https://www.atlantamagazine.com/news-culture-articles/2022-atlanta-500-religion-nonprofits-advocacy/.
13. “Dena Kimball: Executive Director and Fund Advisor for Girls’ Rights.” The Kendeda Fund. Accessed July 2, 2022. https://kendedafund.org/team-member/dena-kimball/.
14. Kavate, Michael. “As the Kendeda Fund Prepares to Sunset, Here Are Nine Questions for Executive Director Dena Kimball.” Inside Philanthropy. April 19, 2022. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2022/4/19/the-kendeda-fund-sunsets-in-2023-here-are-nine-questions-for-executive-director-dena-kimball.
15. ^[1] Kavate, Michael. “As the Kendeda Fund Prepares to Sunset, Here Are Nine Questions for Executive Director Dena Kimball.” Inside Philanthropy. April 19, 2022. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2022/4/19/the-kendeda-fund-sunsets-in-2023-here-are-nine-questions-for-executive-director-dena-kimball.
16. ^[1] “Sex and Power: How Foundations Can Attack the Roots of Child Marriage.” The Chronicle of Philanthropy. August 14, 2019. https://www.philanthropy.com/article/sex-and-power-how-foundations-can-attack-the-roots-of-child-marriage/.
17. “Individual Contributions.” Campaign Finance Data. Federal Election Commission. Accessed July 2, 2022. https://www.fec.gov/data/receipts/individual-contributions/?contributor_name=dena+kimball.