BY JACKSON CHEN | Goddard Riverside Community Center’s board of directors named Roderick Jones, the president and CEO of Grace Hill Settlement House, to take over as the organization’s new executive director.
Jones, 47, has been leading the St. Louis, Missouri-based nonprofit organization since 2008. Grace Hill has provided social services for low-income families in St. Louis since its start in 1903.
“I believe strongly that every person deserves the opportunity to reach their fullest potential regardless of who they are and where they were born,” Jones said in a press release. “I know Goddard Riverside shares that belief, and I look forward to leading this essential organization in its work with and for the community.”
The Upper West Side-headquartered Goddard Riverside, with an annual budget of roughly $26 million and a staff of 267 full-time and 180 part-time employees, delivers a wide array of services including youth outreach, early childhood education, supportive housing, legal representation, senior programs, and home-delivered meals from 21 locations across the city.
Jones grew up in the New York City Housing Authority’s Cypress Hill housing in East New York and pursed his master’s degree in Public Administration at SUNY Brockport and his doctorate in Education from St. John Fisher College in Rochester.
In his work at Grace Hill, Jones earned the honor of Not-for-Profit Leader of the Year in 2011 from the St. Louis American, the area newspaper, and the St. Louis Regional Chamber, the local chamber of commerce.
Jones will succeed Stephan Russo, who recently announced his intention to pass the torch at Goddard Riverside. Russo has been with the organization for 40 years and at its helm for 18 years as the executive director.
While Russo’s last day has not been set yet, he said that he would be willing to help the organization transition to its new leader.
Betsy Newell, the president of Goddard Riverside’s board of directors, said, “We have tremendous confidence that Dr. Jones has the experience and skills needed to carry Goddard Riverside and its mission forward.”
