UNITED WAY CEO CELEBRATED FOR TEN YEARS OF SERVICE

On April 1, 1996, Maria Vizcarrondo assumed the position of President and CEO of United Way of Essex and West Hudson, making her the first woman to head a Metro I United Way raising 10 million dollars or more in the State of New Jersey.

Ms. Vizcarrondo has taken the United Way of Essex and West Hudson through the transformation from a fundraising federation to a community impact organization. Under her leadership, the United Way of Essex and West Hudson has established major community initiatives; created statewide collaborations to address aftermath services in disaster situations; engaged strategic collaborations for children resulting in legislation addressing community needs such as health insurance programs for uninsured families and founded a faith-based substance abuse treatment and prevention collaboration.

In 2002, Ms. Vizcarrondo served as a presenter/moderator on collaboration and community impact at the United Way International Assembly in Cape Town, South Africa. She currently serves on the Executive Committee of the United Way of America National Professional Council and was recently re-elected by her colleagues as President of United Ways of New Jersey.

Prior to her selection as President and CEO, Ms. Vizcarrondo served as the Surrogate of Essex County. Her election to this post on November 4, 1993, made her the first Latino to be elected to a countywide post in the history of Essex County Government. From 1990 to 1993, she was the founding Director of the Center for Hispanic Policy, Research and Development (formerly The Office of Hispanic Affairs) at the Department of Community Affairs, Trenton. Under her leadership, the Center became the central repository for data on Latinos and established the Latino Fellows Leadership Institute. As Executive Director of ASPIRA, Inc. of New Jersey in the 1980's, she was instrumental in expanding the organization's services in northern New Jersey by creating chapters in the central and southern regions of the state, serving over 10,000 Latino youth annually.

Ms. Vizcarrondo is a recognized leader within the community. In 1997, she was listed among the "100 Most Influential People in New Jersey". She has been honored at both the local and national level for her work in education and community service. Her legacy stems from creating initiatives to address community problems ranging from hunger and drug abuse to the status of women and minorities. While she has served on numerous boards and commissions in these noted areas her most current involvement is in the following: The Governor's Cabinet for Children and the New Jersey Council of Grant makers. She is a charter member of the NJ Institute for Social Justice and Co-chairs of the Essex County Human Service Advisory Council. She served on Governor-Elect Jim McGreevey's transition team for Humans Services and Chaired the transition team of the Essex County Executive-Elect Joseph DiVincenzo (2002).

Ms. Vizcarrondo is a graduate of Kean University in NJ and holds a Master's Degree in Public Policy and Administration from Columbia University. She has received executive training through the JFK School of Government as well as the Business School at Harvard University and the Center for Creative Leadership. She was a fellow in the National Hispana Leadership Program and the International YWCA leadership Institute in Geneva, Switzerland. She resides in Newark and has two daughters, Lisa, a physician and Amaris a corporate professional.

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