INDIANAPOLIS – Coburn Place has named Rachel Scott as president and chief executive officer. Scott brings a wealth of leadership experience to the organization and served most recently as chief strategy officer at Indiana United Ways.
“The board of directors is thrilled Rachel is joining our team and is confident she will be a tremendous advocate for our staff, survivors and all our stakeholders,” says Board Chair Kathi Badertscher. “She has a deep commitment to survivors of interpersonal abuse, and we welcome her strategic mind and enthusiasm for service to the community.”
In her four-and-a-half years at IUW, Scott led the process of securing and managing emergency COVID and other matching dollars for the United Way network in Indiana. She coached United Ways on corporate engagement and partnerships, and worked closely with United Ways during a business model transition that includes a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.
As a consultant, Scott’s experience includes strategic and fiscal sustainability planning, program design, grant seeking and lobbying for organizations like the Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence and EMBARC, a refugee-led human services organization. She worked with the Iowa domestic violence organization during its program transition to rapid rehousing from a shelter-based service delivery model. In state government, Scott served as the governor-appointed director of the Iowa Commission on the Status of Women for four years and led collaborative efforts toward college access at Iowa College Aid.
“My leadership experience with nonprofits and state government has been deeply informed by my lived experience and understanding of the value of investing in people,” says Scott. “For me, education and self-inquiry were the pathways. The mission and holistic approach of Coburn Place to empower survivors through self-directed and self-referential healing inspires me. I’m excited to meet the talented staff and get to work.”
An alum of Arsenal Tech High School, Scott has a master’s degree in public policy from Drake University and a master’s in English from Truman University. She assumes her responsibilities as Coburn Place president and CEO on Aug. 12, 2021.
About Coburn Place
Coburn Place empowers survivors of interpersonal abuse and envisions a world where everyone may live free from abuse. It is Indiana’s largest and most comprehensive provider of longer-term housing options for survivors. Coburn Place offers on-site transitional housing and community-based housing in a Domestic Violence Housing First approach to identify and eliminate housing barriers and improve survivors’ overall housing stability and well-being. It is a nationally recognized model program and has provided life-changing support to more than 5,000 adults and children since 1996. For more information, visit coburnplace.org.
Contact: Kim Easton, communications manager, kim@coburnplace.org