By Joel Madsen, Chair, Board of Directors
On behalf of the Neighborhood Partnerships Board of Directors and our staff, I write to share some very important news. After fifteen years as our Executive Director, Janet Byrd is stepping down from her position this year.
We are so grateful for all of Janet’s vision, work, passion, and brilliance. Over the past fifteen years, Janet has been an amazing leader for Neighborhood Partnerships – steering us through times of uncertainty, recession, growth, and transformative change.
When Janet began at Neighborhood Partnerships, she, with several critical partners, founded the Housing Alliance. Under her thoughtful leadership, that coalition is now 90 members strong and is a powerful and effective force in the fight for housing opportunity for all Oregonians. Together, we have won major victories, including establishing a dedicated revenue source for affordable housing.
The Oregon Individual Development Account (IDA) Initiative, under Janet’s leadership, grew into the largest and most effective IDA program in the country. The Initiative provides an ever more critical statewide network of support for savers who are building on hope for a better future, providing tools and matching funds to help make their dreams a reality. Janet has had a tremendous and positive impact on advancing financial stability for all Oregonians.
Over the years that Janet has been our Executive Director, NP has evolved as an organization reflecting many changes in our communities, our state, and our country. Janet’s leadership helped our organization lean in to change, envision the future we want for all Oregonians, and grow into the impactful statewide organization we are today, with equity at the center of our work.
Over the last three years, Janet and everyone on staff and on the Board at Neighborhood Partnerships have embarked on a transformative diversity, equity, and inclusion process. Janet’s unwavering support for deep structural change means that this work will continue to be a core element of our organization over the coming years.
Janet has been a visionary leader for Neighborhood Partnerships and for Oregon. On behalf of the board and staff, I hope you’ll join me in thanking Janet for her leadership over the last fifteen years, and wishing her well in her next chapters.
Over the past few months, Janet and Neighborhood Partnerships’ board and staff have been laying groundwork for this leadership transition. While the timing may seem unusual given our current circumstances, rest assured that this is something our organization has been actively planning for. We have a strong transition team in place. Janet will continue to serve as our Executive Director until a new Executive Director starts, which we anticipate will be in the Fall.
Please stay tuned for an official announcement of the job opening as we seek our next Executive Director. The position posting and job description will be available by mid-May.
We look forward to connecting with key partners over the next week to help us think about the critical qualities of our next Executive Director. If you have input you’d like to share, please feel free to send it to us!
While we are truly sad to see Janet’s tenure come to an end, we are excited for what lays ahead for her and for Neighborhood Partnerships. She is ready to start her next chapter, and we wish her well on the journey. We look forward to gathering – when it is safe to do so – to celebrate her work!
Sincerely,
Joel Madsen
Chair,
Neighborhood Partnerships
Board of Directors
On behalf of Board and Staff