Executive Leadership Transition
Announcement: April 18, 2023
We are delighted to announce the appointment of Kalika A. Curry as the new executive director of the Eastside Pathways Backbone, effective April 3rd. We highly value Kalika’s foundational work at Eastside Pathways, her intentionality in building relationships, and her adaptive and visionary leadership.
Kalika joined Eastside Pathways in 2019 as our first Community Impact Manager. In her role, she has led the Racial Equity Council and facilitated a workgroup to develop the Eastside Pathways’ Racial Equity Pledge. She created a POC Only Affinity CAN, facilitated the Career Pathways and Racial Equity CANs, and co-led the Covid-19 CAN with Sandy Nathan. Kalika’s Adaptive Leadership skill set, commitment to Racial Equity, and strategic systems thinking have been recognized as exceptional, locally in our Partnership, in our greater Eastside Community, and within the national StriveTogether network.
We are confident that with Kalika’s leadership, the Eastside Pathways Backbone will advance and deepen the work of the Eastside Pathways Partnership.
We would like to thank and acknowledge the incredible commitment and contributions of the Backbone staff who drive systems change work: Payton Richardson (Data Officer), Sandy Nathan (Community Impact Manager), Vicky Yu (Business and Operations Manager), and Sujata Agrawal (part-time Communications Content Manager).
We, and the Backbone staff, thank Interim Executive Director Amy Wasser for her leadership over the last four months. Amy provided day-to-day operational leadership and completed an in-depth organizational assessment that will be used to build out the Backbone’s strategic plan. Amy will move to the position of Transition Consultant to support Kalika during April.
As we move forward under Kalika’s leadership, we will continue to pursue our commitment to work collectively with the Partnership to ensure all children, youth, and young adults thrive in East King County.
Please join us in wishing Kalika all the best in her new role.
Warmly,
The Eastside Pathways Backbone Board
Cathy Habib, David Downing, Hala Nuemah, Putter Bert, Tom Brewer
Message from Kalika A. Curry
As the new Executive Director of Eastside Pathways, I am honored and humbled by the support of our community. From lifting me up early on in my career, you know who you are, to continuing to support me as I grow as a leader – I AM my ancestor’s wildest dreams, and I stand on the shoulders of giants.
After graduating from Leadership Eastside, I knew I had to be intentional about where I placed myself within systems to truly affect change. I was fortunate to have an organization like Eastside Pathways to take up purpose-driven work in collaboration with people from all walks of life. I believe in the theories embedded in Collective Impact and Adaptive Leadership and deeply appreciate all the folks who show up to transform the quality of life for children, youth, and young adults in our region.
Thank you to all our Partners – each and every one of you is a critical stakeholder in our change efforts. Thank you to our community of supporters – you make our work possible.
Sincerely,
Kalika A. Curry
Executive Director
Eastside Pathways Backbone
Announcement: December 9, 2022
Eastside Pathways Board is pleased to announce we have contracted with Valtas Group to place Amy Wasser as our Interim Executive Director to lead the Eastside Pathways Backbone. Amy is a 25+ year non-profit professional with significant expertise in transitional leadership, building organizational capacity, and strategic planning. Amy will start on Monday, December 12th and remain as our Interim Executive Director until we are able to find a permanent Executive Director. Updates about that search can be read here.
We look forward to all Eastside Pathways partners (organizational, community, philanthropic) meeting Amy in the next few months.
Eastside Pathways Backbone and Partners are extremely grateful to Stephanie Cherrington for her passionate and visionary leadership over the past 10 years. Her last day with Eastside Pathways will be December 30th. Please read the message from Stephanie below.
Thank you,
Eastside Pathways Board
Message from outgoing Executive Director, Stephanie Cherrington
It was fate and luck that brought me to this work 11 ½ years ago.
In May of 2011, I ran into Bill Henningsgaard – whom I’d briefly met years before – when he asked if I’d be interested in helping with “this new startup idea, collective impact”. He shared with me the white paper from the Stanford Social Innovation Review which I promptly read that night. Immediately, I was hooked. After spending years in the private and nonprofit sector, I knew that if systems change was ever possible, it would be through collective impact. I was in!
After over 2 years of working hand-in-hand with Bill and a small but dedicated team, losing him and his son, Max, in August of 2013 was one of the saddest days of my life. I’m forever grateful for the vision that Bill and his wife, Susan, had for our community and in particular, our children, youth, and young adults. The vision to understand how we, as stakeholders in our community, could eliminate both the duplication and gaps that are often harmful to our community youth. Harm, which we often create unintentionally by working in isolation.
It’s true, there are many, many programs in which partnering takes place. However, as the saying goes, “programs rich and systems poor” – we need more than just programs. The ideal is to create persistent systems, no matter the individual in place. That means organizational, community, and funder systems which create sustainable bridges for the adults who provide the support and services, and ultimately for the children, youth, and young adults of our community. Bridging the gaps between early learning to K-12, K-12 to post-secondary degree, training, or certification, and post-secondary to employment sectors.
This community partnership has come a long way in 11 ½ years thanks to the work that each of you have put into building it together with the Backbone staff and board. Thank you for the dedication to constantly examining your individual practices, policies, and behaviors, to making the modifications necessary for progress, and to each other to create a community system which builds equitable pathways for children, youth, and young adults, especially those most directly impacted by existing systems.
I plan to continue this work in some form or shape as I move forward and I look forward to staying connected to this community. Know that I’ll be cheering you, the staff, board, and future leadership on while you continue this work for yourselves, each other, and most importantly for the children, youth, and young adults in our community, cradle to career.
Until we meet again…
Warmly,
Stephanie
Update: November 28, 2022
The Executive Director Search Committee is continuing to work with Koya Partners in search of the next Executive Director of the Eastside Pathways Backbone. We believe that it is critically important to find the right individual for this position, someone who matches the passion and quality of our current Backbone staff members and has a vision and dedication to cradle to career collective action.
The Search Committee interviewed another round of candidates but we did not find that right fit. As Stephanie Cherrington’s last day (Dec 30th) approaches, we have turned our attention to securing an Interim Executive Director to provide support to the Backbone staff and the current work streams. We are having several conversations and hope to have an Interim Executive Director in place in the next few weeks so that they can overlap with Stephanie.
The EP Search committee will continue to work with Koya Partners as they will be relaunching the search in earnest. If you have any ideas or recommendations for this opportunity, please reach out to Koya directly: asessoms@koyapartners.com
Here is the link to the Position Profile for your review and to forward to your network.
The work of Eastside Pathways continues to go strong. If you are a current Partner (Organizational, Philanthropic, Community), please make sure to read and sign your Partner Agreement that you recently received via DocuSign. Also please join us at two upcoming convenings we review together the results of the Partner Survey as a collective.
As always, if you have any questions or input on this process, please reach out to any of us directly.
Thank you,
Eastside Pathways Search Committee
Update: October 14, 2022
An update about the latest developments in the Search for our next Executive Director of the Backbone.
- Koya Partners prepared six high quality candidates to be presented to the Search committee for 1st round interviews which were conducted in August.
- Four of these candidates were moved onto the Backbone staff interviews in late August.
- Our Search committee met again to review all feedback from both interviews and moved three of these candidates to the final interview round.
- One of our top three candidates removed themselves from the search due to their pursuing another position.
- A final interview panel consisting of Eastside Pathways Partners and Board members was convened on Sept 28th to interview our top two candidates.
- Search committee met to review this additional feedback and made a recommendation to the full Eastside Pathways Board on our top candidate.
- Koya presented an offer to our top preferred candidate. A few days of negotiation and conversation occurred. Unfortunately, the candidate withdrew from the process and was not able to commit to the role ultimately due to salary and benefits mis-alignment. After review of all the data and feedback the Search committee decided to not pursue our other final candidate.
While this is unfortunate news, we are confident we will find our right next leader and we ask for your patience and commitment to Eastside Pathways as we continue with the search process.
The Search committee is planning for next steps, including researching a potential interim Executive Director to provide support after the new year if needed. Stephanie remains committed to helping maintain our momentum on a number of Partnership efforts including our Reimagining Leadership work.
The EP Search committee will continue to work with Koya as they will be relaunching the search in earnest. If you have any ideas or recommendations for this opportunity, please reach out to Koya directly: asessoms@koyapartners.com
Here is the link to the Position Profile for your review and to forward to your network.
While we continue to keep you informed as our search progresses, rest assured that the important work of Eastside Pathways Backbone and Partnership continues. Be sure to check out Eastside Pathways website for the most up-to-date information on current work and convenings.
As always, if you have any questions or input on this process please reach out to any of us directly.
Thank you,
Eastside Pathways Search Committee
Update: July 27, 2022
Here are the latest developments:
- Koya Partners launched the search in the market on June 24, 2022. The online position profile can be viewed here. Please continue to pass along to those you believe may be interested.
- Koya has done extensive outreach to prospective candidates and possible referral sources.
- Our Eastside Pathways Executive Search Committee meets with Koya every 2 weeks for regular check-ins with updates on market feedback, candidate interest, and candidate calibration.
- To date, Koya has received numerous applicants and we are moving some of these candidates forward into 1st round interviews.
- Koya will prepare candidates and the Executive Search Committee for 1st round interviews which will be conducted in August.
- After the 1st round of interviews, the Search Committee will narrow the pool presenting the top candidates to a EP Backbone staff panel and EP Leadership & Partner Panel.
While we continue to keep you informed as our search progresses, rest assured that the important work of Eastside Pathways Backbone and Partnership continues. Be sure to check out Eastside Pathways website for the most up-to-date information on current work and convenings.
As always, if you have any questions or input on this process please reach out to any of us directly.
Thank you,
Cathy Habib, EP Board Chair & Executive Search Committee Chair
Update: June 15, 2022
We hope this message finds you doing well as the Pacific Northwest, hopefully, turns the corner from spring to summer soon. As a valued stakeholder in our community, we want to provide you with an update on Eastside Pathways transitions.
On January 26th earlier this year, we shared that Stephanie would be stepping down as the Executive Director of Eastside Pathways Backbone at the end of June 2022. Consistent with several email messages, blog posts, and convenings, including five live, virtual conversations over the last five months where partners joined and asked questions and provided input on the transition, we thought another update might be helpful.
As we near the end of June, Stephanie has committed to the backbone staff and board that she will remain with the organization until a new Executive Director is named and initial onboarding is complete to ensure a smooth transition. We are also thrilled to share with you the profile (job description) for this role developed by the search firm, Koya Partners.
Koya Partners met with dozens of individuals including staff, board, partners, and community members over several months to gather input and ideas on the future of Eastside Pathways and the important qualities for a new, innovative Executive Director to support the backbone and collective partnership. We would appreciate you forwarding this announcement along to your networks to help Koya Partners craft a highly qualified candidate pool (suggested copy for message below).
Please continue to feel free to reach out to Cathy or Stephanie if you have questions as we navigate these new waters. Our continued thanks for your dedication to your individual, and our collective work to improve how we work together, resulting in equitable pathways for children, youth, and young adults in East King County.
Sincerely,
Cathy Habib, Board Chair
Stephanie M. Cherrington, Executive Director
Suggested copy for email
Dear _____,
I am excited to share that Eastside Pathways has launched the search for its Executive Director. You can view the full position profile here.
This is a pivotal moment for Eastside Pathways Partnership. The successful candidate will be charged with oversight for the continued success, transition, and growth of the backbone organization, and they will be a visionary leader who will work to advance Eastside Pathways’ mission.
I/We would appreciate you forwarding this announcement along to your networks or post in social media such as LinkedIn, in order to help craft a highly qualified candidate pool. Thank you so much for your continued support!
Best,
Update: April 27, 2022
The Eastside Pathways Board will be working collaboratively with Koya Leadership Partners – Liz Lombard and her team members, Angie Sessoms and Kimmi Bell, on the search for our next Executive Director of the Eastside Pathways Backbone. Koya is an executive search firm that works exclusively with mission-driven clients and has a vast network that will support our search efforts.
Our Koya team has already begun intake calls with our Backbone staff members and current Board members to develop a Position Profile which will help identify and attract our future Backbone leader.
Input on our Position Profile will also come from Eastside Pathways’ Organizational, Community, and Philanthropic Partners. As Eastside Pathways Partners, each of you ARE the Partnership. The work and passion to achieve our collective goals are embedded in each of you. The Backbone plays a unique and critical role as the convener of the work and hearing from our Partners about their aspirations for Eastside Pathways as a partnership can help shape the qualities we need in the executive leadership of the Backbone.
Koya will host small group conversations for Partners in stakeholder groups. Watch for an email from me sharing the times for those conversations and opportunity to provide input.
Gathering input from staff, board members and partners will take place in May. Once the Position Profile has been finalized and is ready to share, we will send that out broadly. Executive Director searches usually take 3-6 months, start to finish.
Originally, Stephanie Cherrington had planned to step down by the end of June 2022. Stephanie has been gracious to extend her timeline so that she can continue as Executive Director and help with any needed transition phase as needed. A huge thank you to Stephanie for her flexibility and continued dedication to the Eastside Pathways Backbone.
Stephanie and I continue to hold “Open Door” sessions to address questions and for you to provide input on this process. The final two dates are:
Thursday, 5/5, 12 – 1 p.m.
Friday, 5/27, 9-10 a.m.
Please click here to register and receive the video link.
Thank you,
Cathy Habib, Eastside Pathways Board Chair and Chair of the ED Search Committee
Update: February 22, 2022
As you learned last month, Stephanie Cherrington will be transitioning out of her role as Eastside Pathways’ Backbone Executive Director at the end of June 2022. We are so incredibly grateful for Stephanie’s leadership and her passion for building an active, equitable and sustainable Partnership.
The EP Board has formed an Executive Leadership Transition Team. Board members Alka Manchanda (Community Partner), David Downing (CEO Youth Eastside Services), Putter Bert (CEO KidsQuest), Sue Baugh (Community Partner) and Cathy Habib (Community Partner) are on that team. Our role is to steward the Executive Leadership search through the transition phase, where Stephanie will spend some time overlapping with the new EP Backbone leadership.
We have determined that it would be best if we hire outside expertise to help with the process and search. We are currently interviewing consultants to find the right fit. Once a firm is in place, they will be collecting information from EP Partners (Organization, Community & Funding) to build a Position Profile for Executive Leadership. The interview team for the position will be built from a combination of EP Partners working to ensure a racial, ethnic and LGBTQIA+ equity lens in the process.
We will continue to update you periodically with any important milestones.
To help support communication and a transparent process, Stephanie Cherrington and Cathy Habib will continue to host “Open Door” sessions for you to give input on this process or ask questions. The next few dates for these are:
Friday, 3/18, 9 – 10 AM
Wednesday, 4/6, 8:30 – 9:30 AM
Thursday, 5/5, 12 – 1 PM
Friday, 5/27, 9 – 10 AM
Please click here to register and receive the video link.
Thank you,
Cathy Habib, EP Board Chair
Annoucement: January 26, 2022
After 10 years with Eastside Pathways Backbone, I have informed our staff and board that I will be stepping down as the Executive Director at the end of June 2022. My career has spanned many decades in the private and non-profit sectors, and I can easily say that this work to build equitable systems for children, youth, and young adults has been the highlight.
I feel immensely privileged to work with so many who are dedicated and willing to examine and modify their own practices and policies to move towards our common goals individually and collectively. I’m proud of where we are and could not think of a better time – with an amazing, dedicated, and extremely talented Backbone staff – to turn the leadership of the Backbone over to a new set of voices and leadership.
The search process will take several months, with the goal of selecting new leadership before the end of June. It’s my intent to have enough overlap time with new leadership so that a smooth transition is made to ensure the continued success of the EP Backbone team and work. The current Eastside Pathways Board is committed to working with staff, partners, and community as well as providing a transparent process.
Please stay tuned for regular updates throughout the next 5 months as we work through this transition. Thank you in advance for your support and partnership in this process.
Warmly,
Stephanie Cherrington, Executive Director