Atiya Weiss is the Executive Director of the Burke Foundation, where she leads efforts to advance transformative programs and policies that promote the health, well-being, and resilience of children and families across New Jersey. Her leadership spans investments in healthy pregnancies, parent-child relationships, and early learning and care—areas that form the foundation for lifelong opportunity.
Atiya is deeply committed to breaking down silos and building coalitions—centered on community voices—to drive systems change and create intergenerational cycles of opportunity. She collaborates with leaders across philanthropy, government, and nonprofit sectors to tackle the complex social challenges facing underserved children and families, believing that effective, cross-sector partnerships can unlock community potential and deliver lasting impact. Under her leadership, the Burke Foundation has become known for its disciplined and innovative approach to philanthropy. Atiya and her team have proudly co-invested in evidence-based models that deliver relationship-centered care, such as Family Connects, a universal nurse home visiting program now scaling statewide, and CenteringPregnancy, a group prenatal care model proven to improve maternal and infant health outcomes. In recent years, the Foundation has also helped launch major policy and funding initiatives to support the child care workforce, expand HealthySteps in pediatric care, and promote maternal mental health. Previously, Atiya served as Executive Director at JPMorgan’s Philanthropy Center, where she advised charitable trusts and family foundations on strategic giving and social impact. During her tenure, she played a key role in launching the $100 million Global Health Investment Fund in collaboration with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Earlier in her career, she led the Pfizer Foundation’s global health portfolio, overseeing initiatives such as the Global Health Fellows program and Mobilize Against Malaria. Atiya is a 2021 Aspen Institute Ascend Fellow and holds degrees in biology and public policy from Brown University, as well as an MPH in epidemiology from Columbia University. She lives in Princeton, New Jersey, with her husband and two sons.