Washington, DC – July 14, 2023 – The Board of Directors of Urban Alliance has unanimously selected Abiodun Durojaye, Ed.D. as the organization’s next Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Durojaye officially begins her new role on September 5th. The board led a rigorous process in collaboration with the national executive search firm, LeaderFit, to identify a strong leader.
“Abiodun is a beloved and respected member of our team as she currently serves as the Executive Director of our Chicago operation,” said Mary Menell Zients, Urban Alliance Board Chair. “She is a transformational leader with extensive experience in workforce development and a passion for youth development who has done an exemplary job of guiding our Chicago team through the challenges of the pandemic. She brings a perfect combination of skills for the opportunities ahead in this climate of momentous change for the youth we serve, our partner schools, and our employer partners.
“We are all deeply grateful to Veronica Nolan, our former CEO and board member, and members of her past leadership team, for returning to Urban Alliance to oversee our transition and recentering us all on the heart of our mission. Their dedication and commitment to supporting youth development and belief in our program model have revitalized and invigorated us all.”
Durojaye’s life’s work has centered on breaking down barriers that impede young people from achieving their full potential. “I am honored to build on Urban Alliance’s success and as CEO look forward to leading the organization through a new chapter that will pave the way for young people to excel, advance, and achieve economic mobility,” she said. “Collaborating with school districts and employers is pivotal to create sustainable, equitable and inclusive early career work-based opportunities to transform the lives of young people who will be the next generation workforce.”
She was born and raised in Lagos Nigeria and later migrated to the United States at an early age. Before joining Urban Alliance, Durojaye was Executive Director of the Career Bridge Department at National Louis University. In this role, she assisted in the launch of a Career Readiness Endorsement Program that focused on building students’ confidence and essential skills prior to graduation.
She earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology, and a Master’s Degree in African Studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, and her Doctoral degree in Interdisciplinary Leadership from Governors State University in Chicago. Durojaye is the recipient of many awards including the New Roseland Community 2023 Trailblazer Award, Young Nonprofit Professionals Network 2023 Supervisor of the Year Award, and the 2020 Indiana INTERNnet IMPACT Award for College Career Development Professional of the Year.
Urban Alliance is nationally recognized for having 25 years of unique and valuable experience creating successful and supportive paid internship experiences for young adults with large and small employers across multiple private and public sector industries throughout our regions in the Greater Washington, DC area, Baltimore, Chicago, and Detroit. Since 1996, Urban Alliance has placed over 6,000 young adults in paid internships and trained 23,000 more in workforce skills. Visit www.urbanalliance.org and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.