YWCA Announces New CEO Alba Rodriguez
From the YWCA of NYC
The YWCA of the City of New York (YWCA-NYC), the nation’s very first YWCA association, is pleased to announce the confirmation of Alba Rodriguez as CEO. Alba will lead the organization in its mission to eliminate racism by empowering New York City’s young women, boys, and gender non-conforming youth.
In announcing this decision, YWCA-NYC Board Chair Tracy Richelle High said, “Alba is a leader in aligning mission with strategy and has been dedicated to the well-being of NYC youth throughout her 20-year career. We are excited to welcome Alba to the YWCA-NYC and know that she will bring her commitment and rich experience as a nonprofit leader into this new season for our organization.”
Alba stated, “New York City’s youth, in particular the city’s young women and gender non-conforming youth, face the heaviest burdens of structural inequity. From gender discrimination and racism, to poverty and health injustice, the issues run deep. They need communal support, and the YWCA-NYC has been a crucial part of that support for over 160 years. We offer free educational programming through our Out-of-School (OST) programs and provide needed career mentorship and academic enrichment through our Girls Initiative program. And with the recent $3M gift by Mackenzie Scott, the YWCA-NYC is only poised to grow in deeper solidarity with NYC youth. I look forward to working alongside the staff, Board, YWCA-NYC stakeholders to create a world that sees women, girls, and people of color the way we do: equal, powerful, and unstoppable!”
Alba succeeds YWCA-NYC former board member Mary Crawford who served as interim COO. Ms. Rodriguez earned an Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a B.S. in philosophy and biopsychology from Tufts University.
About YWCA-NYC
The YWCA-NYC’s mission is dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all. Established in 1858, the YWCA-NYC is one of the nation’s oldest non-profit organizations committed to the personal, physical, and social development of women, their families, and their communities, and as such has been a pioneer for social change since its inception. In honor of this history, and in service of our mission, the YWCA-NYC currently provides leadership and advocacy training to 150 young women through our Girls Initiatives and out-of-school time (OST) programming for elementary- and middle-school students in culturally diverse communities in Brooklyn and Manhattan.