Lauress Wilkins Lawrence

Lauress Wilkins Lawrence, Ph.D. is Community and Equity Learning Partner for Elmina B. Sewall Foundation, whose mission is to improve the well-being of people, animals, and the environment in Maine, while fostering equity and centering community voices. Since 2020 she has partnered with Tamarack Institute to co-design, pilot, and implement a collaboration- and capacity-building process with over 80 non-profits and municipal agencies in the twin-cities community of Lewiston and Auburn. Before joining Sewall in 2015, Lauress taught Religious Studies and did multicultural programming at Regis College in Weston, Massachusetts. Her career as a grant-maker began in the early 1980’s at Grants Management Associates in Boston, where she developed expertise in community outreach, social justice, and philanthropy. Lauress serves on the board of Maine Initiatives, a progressive community foundation that promotes racial, social, economic, and environmental justice in Maine. She lives in Portland with her husband Mark and their Goldendoodle Teddy.