Susan Budinger

Founding Director

Susan Budinger is a passionate advocate for education and the emotional well-being of children and adults. In 1999 she helped found and design the Rodel Foundations. Her previous experience includes sales, marketing, human resources and general management.

Budinger is a founding board member of Authentic Connections, which supports the well-being of mothers in high demand careers and works to improve student well-being in high achieving secondary schools. In addition to serving as Vice Chair of Rodel Delaware, she is a board member of the Hoffman Institute Foundation and the Transformational Leadership Council. She has served on the boards of the Arizona Community Foundation, the Arizona Early Education Funds, The Ellis Center for Educational Excellence, the Biltmore Bank of Arizona and Phoenix Country Day School. In 2008 Arizona Governor Napolitano appointed her to the Arizona P – 20 Council.  Budinger has an M.A. in developmental psychology from Arizona State University and a B.A. in mathematics and economics from Hamilton College. She is the mother of two children, who are recent graduates of the University of Arizona and Claremont McKenna College.