Special Education Foundation announces the appointment of David M. Diener as executive director as of July 1, 2017. Diener is an attorney and investment advisor, most recently with St. Louis Trust Company. He served on the SEF board of directors from 2001 to 2012 and helped the organization acquire its first large grant, which was from the Dana Brown Charitable Trust for the Teacher Mini-grant program.
Former Executive Director Diane Buhr has retired, but is working with Diener through the transition. She will continue to write grant requests for the Foundation. Her leadership over the last two decades resulted in greater than 10-fold growth of the annual budget from less than $50,000 to more than $600,000. That represents countless students whom the Foundation helps each year. “Filling Diane’s shoes is a huge task, but I am confident that I will succeed with the support of the board and our generous donors,” says Diener.
The Foundation is grateful to Buhr for her commitment to students with disabilities and to the Foundation and anticipates continued success under Diener’s leadership.