LOS ANGELES, July 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Liberty Hill Foundation's Board of Directors has named Shane Murphy Goldsmith as the next President and CEO of the Foundation. Shane is currently serving as the Executive Director of Liberty Hill, following four years as Vice President and Director of Programs. Shane will begin her new role on December 1, 2013. Kafi D. Blumenfield, Liberty Hill's President and CEO since 2007, will remain at the helm through November 30, 2013 to assist with the transition.
Liberty Hill's Board Chair Jane Peebles remarks, "In the best of circumstances, an organization develops each new generation of leadership under its own roof. That is the case with our appointment of Shane Murphy Goldsmith as the next President and CEO. Liberty Hill is proud of its reputation for outstanding leadership development - with the grantees whom we train through the Wally Marks Leadership Institute, as well as internally with its own staff - and has confidence in Ms. Goldsmith's ability to lead Liberty Hill into a future spearheading ever more impactful ways to advance social justice in Los Angeles and the nation."
As Executive Director, and previously as Vice President and Director of Programs, Ms. Goldsmith has been responsible for the day-to-day oversight of Liberty Hill's programs - including the Wally Marks Leadership Institute for Change and its recently launched Commissions Training program, the Fund for Change (Liberty Hill's grantmaking arm), and Liberty Hill's Common Agenda campaigns. She has also directed Liberty Hill's operations and finance departments.
Prior to joining Liberty Hill, Ms. Goldsmith was the Executive Director of PATH Ventures, an affordable housing development agency. Prior to that, she served as a senior advisor on then-City Council President Eric Garcetti's staff for four years overseeing a variety of field and legislative projects, including housing, economic development, the city budget, public safety, and LGBTQ issues. In addition, Ms. Goldsmith ran the Council District 13 Leadership Institute.
A graduate of Kenyon College, Ms. Goldsmith spent a year as a National Hunger Fellow managing a homeless shelter while doing federal policy research in both Indiana and Washington, D.C. In 1999, she returned to her hometown of Santa Monica, California to further her efforts in community organizing and community advocacy and worked with several organizations, including the Legal Aid Foundation in Los Angeles and the Washington, DC-based Center for Community Change. Ms. Goldsmith received her Master's Degree in Public Policy and Administration at Cal State Long Beach where she did her thesis on leadership development.
As a child, Ms. Goldsmith grew up relying on social security benefits. While she and her brother were still children, their parents died because they did not have access to affordable health care. "The need for social justice is very real to me," Ms. Goldsmith explains. "I understand what it is to work hard and still not have enough. I understand what it is to face discrimination. It's why I've been a lifelong advocate for economic and racial justice. I silently thank my father every day for teaching me that one must fight heartily for change. I am honored to be leading that fight for equality and opportunity through Liberty Hill, one of our country's flagship foundations for social justice and progressive change."
Ms. Goldsmith lives in Los Angeles with her wife and their two year-old son.
SOURCE Liberty Hill Foundation
