Author: Carolyn Berkowitz

Message From the Board Chair: Jennifer Lockwood-Shabat Named as The Women’s Foundation President and CEO

Posted on by Carolyn Berkowitz

portrait-800We are pleased to announce that the Board unanimously appointed Jennifer Lockwood-Shabat as President and CEO of The Women’s Foundation, effective immediately. She succeeds Nicky Goren, who has made a positive and lasting impact on our organization.

Jennifer has been an invaluable asset to the Foundation over the last six years, and we are thrilled that she has agreed to guide us on our mission to drive change and provide economic security to women and girls in the DC region.

Jennifer brings institutional knowledge, reputation, and personal and professional experience that will not only allow us to sustain momentum, but thrive. Prior to joining The Women’s Foundation, Jennifer served as the Director of Public Policy at the National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association. Before that, she spent 10 years at Women’s Policy, Inc., departing as the Director of Policy Research and Publications.

She also is an authentic choice, informed by a personal story that gives her a unique perspective on the needs of economically vulnerable women and girls. Jennifer walked the same path as many of the women we serve, growing up in a small town where her parents were laid off on the same day. She experienced first-hand the challenges of achieving economic security, but gained inspiration and strength as she saw and leveraged the opportunities provided by her mother who supported the family through various jobs.

Carolyn-Berkowitz-Jennifer-Lockwood-Shabat-blogJennifer sees great potential for The Women’s Foundation to build on its impactful work by creating a platform to amplify the voices of women and girls. She sees opportunity to leverage the organization’s leadership, and an environment in which women’s issues are top-of-mind, to bring to life common threads of issues impacting women and girls here, across the country and even around the world. She believes that by raising our collective voice, we can ignite a ripple effect of support.

Thank you for your support of The Women’s Foundation. I look forward to a bright future as we continue to invest in women and girls in our community to ensure that they have the resources they need to thrive.

Click here to read the message we shared with the media today. And click here to learn more about Jennifer.

Transition at The Women’s Foundation – Message From the Board Chair

Posted on by Carolyn Berkowitz

Nicky Goren, president of The Women’s Foundation, has announced her plan to leave the Foundation. Her departure completes a four year tenure highlighted by operational achievements, fundraising success and a commitment to serving economically vulnerable women and girls in our region. Beginning tomorrow, Vice President Jennifer Lockwood-Shabat will serve as interim president at The Women’s Foundation.

Nicky has accepted a position as president and CEO of the Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation, effective July 1. We are grateful to her for the leadership and expertise she brought to The Women’s Foundation during an important period in its evolution. She leaves behind an organization that is operationally resilient and efficient, strengthened in the pursuit of its mission, and characterized by an exceptional team, tenacious in their purpose.

The rest of the board and I are confident that, under Jennifer’s leadership, the Foundation will continue to deliver innovative programs and services that ensure that economically vulnerable women and girls in our community are on a path to prosperity. Over the next 60 days, Jennifer and Nicky will work closely to ensure that the transition period runs smoothly.

Jennifer joined The Women’s Foundation in 2008, and has since provided strategic guidance and leadership across the Foundation, while heading up its programs, major gifts and development functions of the organization. With her at the helm, The Women’s Foundation will continue its long history of outstanding commitment to serving the needs of our community.

In the coming months, you will hear more about this transition from Jennifer, Nicky and me. The board will move quickly to select a permanent president, and we will update you on that process, as well. If you have any questions or concerns during this time period, please reach out to communications@wawf.org.

Finally, I want to say thank you. For more than 15 years, The Women’s Foundation has benefited from great leadership, community partnerships and support, and from our shared commitment to making our region a better, more equitable place for women and girls.Thank you for your continued support. By standing together, we can continue to make a difference in the lives of the hundreds-of-thousands of women and girls who live in poverty.

Click here to read the message we shared with the media today. And click here to learn more about Jennifer.