Dear Nonprofit New York members and friends,
I wanted to let you know about some upcoming changes at Nonprofit New York. Sharon Stapel, our President & Executive Director, will be stepping down on January 10, 2020. Melkis Alvarez-Baez, Nonprofit New York’s Chief Operating Officer, has been appointed Acting President & Executive Director.
Nonprofit New York has had significant growth under Sharon’s leadership and we will miss her.
Under Sharon’s four-year tenure, Nonprofit New York has implemented programs and strategies that have grown the organization’s budget, reach, and relevance. Through a three year strategic plan, Nonprofit New York has diversified our staff, Board, and programming, revised our signature Key Areas of Nonprofit Excellence, and developed our Declaration of Nonprofit Rights and policy platform. We also created the City’s only nonprofit management conference and increased our accessibility to members through an online custom platform, The Community. Nonprofit New York won several key victories, including eliminating the state UBIT tax on commuter benefits, and stopping an unconstitutional donor disclosure law. We also changed our name, and moved to the Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice. During her time at Nonprofit New York, Sharon was selected for City & State’s Nonprofit Power 50 in 2018 and Nonprofit Power 100 in 2019. Sharon will join Legal Hand, founded by former Legal Services Corporation President Helaine Barnett with support from former Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals Jonathan Lippman, to help the community-based legal program scale nationally.
Melkis, who has been with Nonprofit New York for eight years, most recently as COO, will assume the helm during the search for a new President & Executive Director. With Melkis in the Acting role, Nonprofit New York will be able to seamlessly continue its programming, strategic direction, and operations.
The Board of Directors has formed a search committee and has begun a formal search for the new President & Executive Director.
While we will miss Sharon we are pleased that she will continue to provide her skills in serving the nonprofit community.
You can reach me at [email protected]
Ian J. Benjamin
Chair of the Board of Directors, Nonprofit New York