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Center for Community Change Appoints New Staff To Key Senior Management Positions
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Presidential Campaign Advisor and Development Consultant Round Out Talent
Washington - The Center for Community Change is pleased to announce two key appointments to its Senior Management Team. Jeff Parcher and Tori O’Neal-McElrath join the organization as the new director of communications and director of development, respectively.
“We are honored to have both Jeff and Tori’s talent on staff at a time when there is a historic opportunity to win significant policy change benefiting low-income communities,” said Mary Lassen, managing director for the Center for Community Change. “Jeff and Tori bring strong leadership skills as innovators in their fields. Jeff’s great strategic communications instinct will be an asset to our work to elevate the issues of social justice. Tori’s fundraising prowess will help us build a strong fundraising plan during these tough economic times.”
Jeff Parcher, who started Feb. 9, is an internationally recognized communication strategist most recently serving as debate advisor to President-elect Barack Obama, as well as several Democratic House candidates. He was senior communication advisor to Governor Bill Richardson's presidential campaign. For 12 years, Mr. Parcher was the director of debate for the Georgetown University Champion Debate Team. He has been engaged by numerous non-political clients in areas such as: strategic communication planning, crisis communications, organizational change management, media training, speech writing, team building and marketing. In his spare time he is a world class poker player having earned seats in the World Series of Poker four times.
In his new role as director of communications, Mr. Parcher will develop and advance a strategic plan to build and strengthen the communications and external marketing capacity of the Center that is consistent with the organization’s values, mission and program goals. Parcher will provide leadership in several areas of the communications work including new media, messaging and strategic communications.
Tori O’Neal-McElrath, who joins the organization today, brings two decades of experience leading and managing the development efforts of a broad range of community based organizations and grantmaking institutions. She has expertise in fund and organizational development, grantmaking, program design and management. As the principal of her own consulting firm for the last eight years, Ms. O’Neal-McElrath has provided fundraising leadership and expertise to nonprofit organizations and funding collaborations in California and in the Washington, DC area, including the Washington Area Women’s Foundation and the Health Funders Partnership of Orange County. As a staff member, she has served as executive director and development director for a number of nonprofits including the College Fund/UNCF and the Planned Parenthood of Los Angeles. Ms. O’Neal-McElrath is an experienced instructor, presenter, facilitator, and published author of Winning Grants: Step-by-Step, Third Edition (Jossey-Bass, A Wiley Imprint).
As director of development, Ms. O’Neal-McElrath will be responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive fundraising plan to meet the organization’s annual operating budget needs. She will coordinate efforts for the Center’s major 40th Anniversary fundraising campaign and develop strategies to build the endowment and long-range financial stability of the Center.
Founded in 1968 to honor the life and values of Robert F. Kennedy, the Center for Community Change is a national nonprofit dedicated to building the field of community organizing with hundreds of organizations nationwide. One of the longest standing champions for low-income people and communities of color, the Center has strengthened the leadership, voice and power of these communities to confront the vital issues of today and build the social movements of tomorrow.
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