FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Abby Cohen
973.224.0403
abby@rosengrouppr.com
AUSTIN, TEXAS (July 14, 2022)—Gloria Gonzales-Dholakia, Ph.D., has been named as the new executive director of the Austin campus of Jeremiah Program (JP)—a national nonprofit with one of the most successful strategies for disrupting generational poverty among single mothers and their children.
With 20 years in nonprofit, civic engagement, social justice and education sectors, Dr. Gonzales-Dholakia has a successful and storied career. She served as a faculty member at St. Edward’s University and has held leadership roles at the Leander Independent School District, the Hanger Foundation and most recently was the executive director at Jolt—a progressive civic engagement organization focused on building the political power and influence of young Latinos in Texas.
“Gloria stood out as an exceptional community champion and as the ideal leader to guide JP Austin through its next phase,” said Chastity Lord, President and CEO, Jeremiah Program. “Gloria is dedicated to service to the community, disrupting cycles of poverty and building partnerships across sectors that focus on representation and inclusion for those historically marginalized. She has spent her professional career building authentic relationships in the Austin region and is known as a highly networked, well-respected leader, strategic thinker, problem solver, bold communicator and exceptional listener. We are thrilled to welcome her to the JP family.”
In the executive director role, Dr. Gonzales-Dholakia serves as a champion for JP’s two-generation mission and is responsible for achieving the annual fundraising goals of the campus, growing strong community partnerships, working closely with a local community board of trustees to build community engagement, and recruiting, developing and managing a team that plans for a thriving family experience.
“Education is so empowering for families and communities, and it’s at the heart of Jeremiah Program’s mission. This role is a beautiful union of my passion for education, sisterhood, and the impact of mothers and a healthy family,” said Dr. Gonzales-Dholakia. “My background, lived experiences, both professional and personal, have uniquely prepared me for this time and place with JP. I am honored and proud to be joining the Jeremiah Program family. I look forward to working with the families, staff, board, donors and the community to grow this amazing organization.”
Jeremiah Program came to Austin in 2013, in partnership with Guadalupe Neighborhood Development Corporation (GNDC). In 2017, Jeremiah Program opened its own 35-unit housing campus for single moms and their children experiencing poverty. The campus includes an onsite child development center with capacity to serve up to 60 children. In 2021, JP Austin supported 170 moms and children, with an average age of 27 and annual income of $16,721.
About Jeremiah Program:
Jeremiah Program (JP) is a national organization whose mission is to disrupt the cycle of poverty for single mothers and their children, two generations at a time. JP believes the impacts of generational poverty require the centering of the family unit through a two-generation (2Gen) approach. By investing simultaneously in a mother’s vision for her personal and professional goals and the education of her children, she simultaneously reauthors her family’s outcome as well her community’s –proof points matter. In 2021, JP supported 1,100 moms and children across seven cities in Austin, TX; Boston, MA; Brooklyn, NY; Fargo, ND-Moorhead, MN; Minneapolis, MN; Rochester, MN; and St. Paul, MN. In the fall of 2022, JP is launching two additional campuses in Baltimore, MD and Las Vegas, NV.