Welcoming our new CEO, Cherese Ledet

We are excited to share that after a comprehensive national search, Cherese Ledet will join YWCA Evanston/North Shore as the new CEO starting on March 6, succeeding Karen Singer, who will retire as CEO after 18 years of transformative leadership.Our YWCA Board believes wholeheartedly that Cherese is the right person to take the organization to the next level. Cherese is a strategic nonprofit leader with a strong record of impacting communities through service. She is passionate about empowering women and creating equitable and sustainable communities.Since 2004, Cherese has been in leadership positions with YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago. She has implemented new initiatives, secured resources, built partnerships, and developed innovative programs that address the community's needs. In her most recent role as Chief Community Development and Equity Officer, Cherese focused on identifying and reducing health, social, and financial disparities while advancing equitable and healthy communities.“At a pivotal moment when the rights of women, families, people of color, and other marginalized populations are under ever greater threat, I am ready to harness the power of the YWCA and its community of partners and supporters to lead the organization into its next chapter as President & CEO,” says Ledet.Cherese is a certified US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Housing Compliance Manager and a graduate of Y-USA’s Multicultural Executive Development Institute. She earned her BS in Accounting from Chicago State University, where she also received an award for Outstanding Achievement in Community/Public Service. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Top Ladies of Distinction, Inc. – Will County Black Diamond Chapter, the National Housing Network, and the sponsor of the YMCA's Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Team.“I am confident that Cherese’s management experience, financially driven strategic leadership and equity lens will make her successful as she leads our mission, to eliminate racism and empower women, into the future,” says Karen Singer, outgoing CEO.The Board is extremely appreciative of everyone who dedicated countless hours to this search. We would also like to thank Koya Partners for their guidance in this search process. As we start to write this new chapter in YWCA’s long history, we thank you for your unwavering support of our mission and work.Please join us in warmly welcoming Cherese to the YWCA Evanston/ North Shore family.With gratitude,Shabnum Sanghvi, Board Chair YWCA Evanston/North Shore