Anita Scism sets retirement from Endeavor Foundation

Springdale-based nonprofit Endeavor Foundation, which focuses on health, education and community vitality, says longtime president and CEO Anita Scism will retire later this year, a move that’s “the culmination of a multi-year succession planning process,” according to a news release.

Scism has held the job since October 2008. Before that, she was president and CEO of the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville, where she worked for 17 years.

“Anita’s leadership for the past 11 years has helped the Foundation evolve in many ways,” Steve Lane, chairman of Endeavor Foundation’s board of directors, said in a statement. “That includes a focus on systemic change that has allowed us to have an even greater impact on the region as a whole. During Anita’s tenure, Endeavor has invested $75 million in projects that benefit our community, from the substantial expansion of early childhood development programming for low-income families to the strengthening of human services through HARK at the Center for Collaborative Care.”

As part of the leadership succession, the Endeavor Foundation board of directors has appointed Jeff Webster as Scism’s replacement. Webster, a former Endeavor Foundation board member, has decades-long experience in strategy and implementation at a number of companies including Simmons Foods, Tyson Foods and Kellogg’s.

Scism will assist with the transition by continuing on as special counsel to Lane through Sept. 30.