title
PROPOSED RESOLUTION
HONORING THE WORK AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF KAREN SINGER
WHEREAS, after serving nearly two decades, current President and CEO Karen Singer has announced she will retire from YWCA Evanston/North Shore (YWCA E/NS). Since Singer joined the organization in 2005 it has doubled the number of participants served, launched its Equity Institute, increased private funding tenfold, and completed an $18.5 million expansion that doubled its footprint; and
WHEREAS, under her leadership, the YWCA E/NS established the annual YWomen Leadership Awards to recognize the outstanding contributions that women in the community have made toward empowering women and eliminating racism (2008); expanded the relationship violence prevention program Building Healthy Relationships to include curricula for middle school and high school youth and the Campus Dating Violence program (2009); expanded the financial literacy program Basic Money Management to the community (2010); initiated the Equity Institute, positioning the organization as a resource and leader in working to achieve equity, began the Community Conversations on Race Series, Let's Talk at Lunch, and Anti-Racism Training (2011); began sponsoring the Stand Against Racism, an annual event held the last Friday in April that draws 10,000 participants and encourages communities and community members to acknowledge racial inequity and work for change (2012); began the Equity Summit as a way to bring people of all ages and demographics together to deepen their understanding of their own racial identities, develop sills to work for change, formulate action plans, and engage with others (2016); launched YW Culinary, a 12-week job training program designed to prepare women for success in Chicagoland's vibrant food service industry (2018); acquired two social enterprises: YWCA Shop for Good and the Crowded Closet to provide low cost clothing and volunteer opportunities from which100% of profits help support YWCA's domes...
Click here for full text