Markita Morris-Louis

Markita Morris-Louis (Lou-wee) proudly serves as Chief Executive Officer for Compass Working Capital, a national nonprofit working to end asset poverty for families with low-incomes and narrow the racial and gender wealth divides through policy advocacy, direct service, and capacity building. Markita’s leadership is focused on centering equity and amplifying the voices of those Compass serves to shift narratives about communities experiencing poverty. Prior to becoming CEO, she was Compass’ founding Chief Strategy Officer, leading the organization’s national strategy for scale and impact.

Before Compass, Markita served as Interim Executive Director of the Arts + Business Council for Greater Philadelphia and as Senior Vice President and General Counsel at Clarifi, a nonprofit housing and financial counseling agency, where she led a team serving 15,000 clients annually. She also spent a dozen years in real estate law, economic justice, impact litigation, and community development, including advocacy for fair lending, housing, and employment practices. Markita has served on numerous boards, including the Consumer Advisory Board of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Affordable Housing Advisory Council of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh, and currently serves on the Board of the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency as Chair of the Policy Committee.

Markita has been featured in local and national media and has spoken at national conferences on issues ranging from racial disparities in homeownership to social determinants of health. She has been honored as a Woman of Distinction by the Philadelphia Business Journal, named a Social Mobility Innovator by the Social Innovations Journal, and most recently named to the Pennsylvania Nonprofit Power 100 list. A proud native of North Philadelphia and raised in subsidized rental housing, Markita holds degrees from Brown University and New York University School of Law and studied at the University of Natal in Durban, South Africa.