Mazzoni Center picked healthcare exec Lydia Gonzalez Sciarrino as its new CEO

Mazzoni Center has named nonprofit pro Lydia Gonzalez Sciarrino as its new CEO.

Gonzalez Sciarrino joins the LBGTQ healthcare provider from Florida, where she worked most recently as CEO of HIV/AIDS-focused Whole Family Health Center. Earlier in her career, she worked as CFO of The Sarah A. Reed Retirement Center for older adults in Erie, Pa.

The news follows a rough year for Mazzoni. Last April, longtime CEO Nurit Shein and Board President Jimmy Ruiz both resigned amid claims of racial bias and ineffective leadership. Then in September, Mazzoni front-line staffers voted to unionize despite efforts by interim CEO Stephen Glassman to discourage it, including via the hiring of an anti-union consulting firm.

“We can only move forward if we work together. It’s not about one individual it’s about the mission and who we are serving and every single person at Mazzoni Center has an important contribution to make, regardless of their job title.” – Lydia Gonzalez Sciarrino pic.twitter.com/vjLkhbQvVA

— Mazzoni Center (@MazzoniCenter) March 26, 2018

Gonzalez Sciarrino was selected following a five-month national search, during which Mazzoni leadership hired Kittleman search firm and established a 14-member advisory search committee of staff, board members and community members to inform early stages of the search.

Committee members included William Way Community Center ED Chris Bartlett, Mazzoni’s recently instated medical director, Dr. Nancy Brisbon, and the City of Philadelphia’s director of the Office of LGBT Affairs, Amber Hikes.

“The CEO search committee was large to ensure we had many voices representing a broad range of experience, expertise, and tenure to ensure the selection process was inclusive and representative of the diversity of our organization,” said Board President Christopher Pope in a press release. “I truly believe this approach allowed us to identify the right pool of candidates and to select the best candidate to maintain the integrity of Mazzoni Center’s mission while leading the organization into the future.”

Gonzalez Sciarrino wasn’t immediately available for comment on Monday morning. In a statement, she said:

“The advances made in the areas of race and gender equality are under fire and the LGBTQ community continues to face insurmountable challenges in every aspect of life. Mazzoni Center is sitting on the cusp of a new movement and I want to be a part of it.”