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Catholic Charities USA Has New CEO

Kerry Alys Robinson, an expert in Catholic leadership and philanthropy, will be the next president and CEO of Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA) in Alexandria, Virginia. She will become only the second layperson and second woman to guide the domestic humanitarian work of the Catholic Church in the United States.

Robinson succeeds Sister Donna Markham OP, Ph.D., who is retiring after nine years of transformational leadership. “I could not be more pleased that Kerry Robinson is stepping into this role that has meant so much to me,” Sister Donna said via a statement.

The organization reported revenue of $4.5 billion last year.

Robinson currently is an executive partner of Leadership Roundtable, the organization of laity, religious and clergy working together to promote best practices and accountability in the management, finances, communications and human resource development of the Catholic Church in the U.S. She has led Leadership Roundtable since its inception, serving as its founding executive director and playing a defining role in its growth and success.

She is also the executive director of the Opus Prize Foundation, which awards an annual million-dollar prize honoring those whose ministry is dedicated to alleviating human suffering.

“The gospels call Catholics and all people of good will to serve those most in need of our aid,” Robinson said via a statement. “The staff and volunteers of Catholic Charities agencies around the country answer that call every day: feeding the hungry, comforting the afflicted and welcoming the stranger. I am deeply honored and profoundly humbled to be a part of this life-giving mission.”

A major focus of Robinson’s work at Leadership Roundtable has been helping the Church to avail itself of the expertise of the laity, assisting in the training and formation of ordained, religious and lay leaders, and helping Church leaders solve complex, contemporary challenges. At the invitation of the Vatican, she also has advised the church on how to empower and engage women leaders. With her appointment as CCUSA president and CEO, Robinson will now hold one of the most impactful and visible roles in the church in the U.S., according to a statement from the organization.

A member of the Raskob Foundation for Catholic Activities and FADICA (Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities), she has been an advisor to and trustee of more than 25 grantmaking foundations, charitable nonprofits and family philanthropies. She served for 15 years on the national committee for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Catholic Campaign for Human Development.

Prior to her current roles, Robinson was director of development for Saint Thomas More Catholic Chapel and Center at Yale University. She led a $75 million fundraising campaign to expand and endow the Chapel’s intellectual and spiritual ministry and construct a Catholic student center. At Yale, she also co-founded ESTEEM, a program that prepares Catholic college students for leadership in their future parish communities.

Robinson is the prize-winning author of “Imagining Abundance: Fundraising, Philanthropy and a Spiritual Call to Service.” Her work also has appeared in America Magazine, Chicago Catholic and other Catholic publications.

Robinson is a graduate of Georgetown University and Yale Divinity School. She has been awarded seven honorary doctorates and is the recipient of numerous awards including: the Sapientia et Doctrina Award from the Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education at Fordham University; the Hearts of the Community Award from the Apostles of the Sacred Heart; the Madonna Della Strada Award from the Ignatian Volunteer Corps; the Cardinal Bernardin Award from Catholic Common Ground Initiative at Catholic Theological Union; and the Loyola Medal from St. Ignatius Loyola in New York City. She was also the Lake Institute on Faith and Giving’s Distinguished Visitor at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.