Andrea L. Taylor

Ms. Taylor is the director for North America Community Affairs for Microsoft Corporation. In her role, she sets the strategy for and manages the implementation of Microsoft's Unlimited Potential Community Technology Skills program, Puget Sound community engagement, and employee community programs in the U.S., including matching gifts and volunteering. She works closely with nonprofit organizations, governments and businesses in the U.S. and Canada to advance employability and workforce development for youth, women, seniors and displaced and disabled workers. Before joining Microsoft, she was the founding director of the Media Fund at the Ford Foundation, managing $50 million in support of global media projects including Sesame Street in China and South Africa, acclaimed television series such as Eyes on the Prize and The Pacific Century, and National Public Radio. Recently, Ms. Taylor was an adjunct faculty at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and during an extensive career in media and philanthropy, she has participated in four global summits of the United Nations on development and information technology and has served as a trustee of numerous cultural, civic and human service organizations. She is currently a trustee of WNYC Public Radio, Philanthropy Northwest and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. Her three adult children are enthusiastic alumni of the original Sesame Street and her two grandchildren are fans of Sesame Workshop's 21^st century programming.