Omar Woodard named new GreenLight Philadelphia Executive Director

A native Philadelphian, Omar has worked in public service for much of his career and brings a great passion for making Philadelphia a better city for all residents.

Until 2014, he was a principal at Venture Philanthropy Partners (VPP), a Washington, D.C. venture philanthropy organization. While there he managed a $20 million portfolio and ran VPP’s Social Innovation Fund initiative.

His public service career includes working in a congressional office, being field director for the Obama campaign in 2008 in Chester County, PA and serving as policy director for State Senator Anthony Williams’ 2015 mayoral campaign.

Omar graduated from Girard College in North Philadelphia and earned his B.A. in International Economics and a Master’s of Public Administration at George Washington University. He has served on multiple Boards of Trustees, including those of Girard College and George Washington University, and currently serves on the Boards of the African American Chamber of Commerce and the Hispanic Heritage Foundation.

Matt Joyce, GreenLight Philadelphia’s first Executive Director, is relocating to NewYork City with his wife, Kate, and is joining the Center for Employment Opportunities – a GreenLight Philadelphia portfolio organization – as Director of Strategic Partnerships.