The executive director of the Community Foundation of East Mississippi is stepping down after four years of leading the agency.

Leigh Thomas, who took the role in early 2018, is retiring, according to a news release from the foundation.

“Thomas has led CFEM with great assiduity and care ushering in a new era at the foundation,” said Dr. Anna Wile, president of the foundation’s board of directors, in a news release.

“We have seen a coherent, strategic growth in all aspects of CFEM’s operations during her tenure,” she added. “While we are sad to see Mrs. Thomas leave, we wish her the best in her retirement.”

“The community here is second to none in generosity, community spirit, and pride of place,” Thomas said in the release. “This has been the most rewarding work I’ve had in my career. The future is very bright for East Mississippi and the Community Foundation of East Mississippi. The best is yet to come.”

Under Thomas’s guidance, total assets for the Foundation have surpassed $10 million and total annual grants to the East Mississippi community have consistently exceeded $1 million annually.

Thomas is also credited with upgrading the agency’s donor and accounting software followed by new and integrated grantmaking software.

She also further modernized the foundation by implementing online giving and fundholder cloud-based monitoring of funds. All grant applications are now accepted online.

The board has begun the search for Thomas’s successor. A job description can be found at cfem.org and resumes may be emailed to office@cfem.org.