Lawanna Kimbro serves as the Chief Diversity and Equity Officer for the NYC Department of Social Services. She has more than 18 years of leadership experience within social service agencies and nonprofit organizations aimed at improving the lives of the most vulnerable in our communities. Prior to her current role, she served as Chief Program Delivery Officer for the Department of Homeless Services, Deputy Commissioner for Outreach, Rehousing and Landlord Management at the Human Resources Administration and Chief Program Officer at the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice.

Before these roles in New York City government, Lawanna worked for the federal government in the Administration for Children and Families as the budget administrator for Family Violence Prevention Services and the Compassion Capital Fund. As a staff attorney at the Equal Justice Initiative, she focused on anti-poverty and anti-discrimination initiatives that challenge the legacy of racial inequality in our country, including major projects to educate communities about slavery, lynching and racial segregation. Lawanna has a Master of Public Administration in public policy and nonprofit management and a Master of Arts in mental health counseling from New York University as well as a Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center.