NAACP Senior Staff

  • Benjamin Todd Jealous is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the NAACP. Mr. Jealous has extensive management experience with civil and human rights institutions. Most recently, Jealous served as the President of the Rosenberg Foundation, a private independent institution that funds civil and human rights advocacy to benefit California's working families. Read more »
  • Roger Vann is the Chief Operating Officer and Chief of Staff for the NAACP. Mr. Vann has an extensive background in civil rights advocacy. Prior to his current tenure with the NAACP, Mr. Vann served as the director of the African American Hiring Initiative (AAHI) for the International Union UNITE HERE. Read more »
  • Steven Hawkins is the Chief Program Officer and Executive Vice President for the NAACP. Mr. Hawkins served as the executive director of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (NCADP) for more than eight years. While at the NCADP, Mr. Hawkins led successful efforts to significantly limit the use of the death penalty in the United States. Read more »
  • Brenda Watkins Noel is the Chief Financial Officer for the NAACP. She brings to the Association over thirty-five years of seasoned financial management expertise which she accumulated from a range of strong non-profit, banking, audit, and educational experiences. Ms. Noel's career has also demonstrated a longstanding commitment to promoting equality. Read more »
  • Kim Keenan is the General Counsel for the NAACP and is responsible for advancing the interests, policies, and goals of the NAACP through litigation. Ms. Keenan is a native of Buffalo, New York. She is a graduate of Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service and the University of Virginia School of Law and a former member of the University of Virginia Law Alumni Council. Read more »
  • Hilary O. Shelton is the Senior Vice President for Advocacy for the NAACP where he directs the NAACP Washington Bureau. Mr. Shelton has more than 20 years of experience in government relations and federal advocacy. Prior to serving as director to the NAACP Washington Bureau, Mr. Shelton served in a number of leadership capacities for leading civil and human rights organizations. Read more »\
  • Marvin Randolph is the St. Vice President for Campaigns at the NAACP.  Mr. Randolph joined the association in 2011 to lead the historic This is My Vote campaign.  Prior to the NAACP, he served as the  Deputy Executive Director, Change Nation at the Campaign for Community Change. Read more »
  • Eric Wingerter serves as Vice President for Communications and New Media. He stepped into the role two years after creating the Association’s Department of New Media, where he oversaw the NAACP's web, listserv, mobile and blogger strategy. Read More »
  • Ana Aponte-Curtis is Vice President of Events Planning, overseeing all conferences, meetings, meeting locations, travel, vendors, logistics, exhibits, and event operations. Read More »
  • Cathy Grantham is the Vice President of Human Resources for the NAACP and is responsible for the overall planning, direction and guidance to the development and implementation of the human resources strategy, organization, policies, guidelines and procedures that will support the core functions of the business and NAACP’s growth opportunities. Read more»
  • Kia Heath is the Vice President, Executive Office Operations for the NAACP. Prior to her current tenure, she served in other senior staff positions including the following: Treasurer for the Mfume for United States Senate Campaign and Director of Executive Operations for the NAACP under the leadership of the former President and CEO, Kweisi Mfume. Read more »
  • Rev. Nelson Rivers is the Vice President for Stakeholder Relations for the NAACP. Rev. Rivers has extensive experience in field operations and membership outreach. He has served in a number of leadership capacities within the NAACP including Chief of Field Operations. From 1984 to 1994, Rev. Rivers served as Director of the South Carolina Conference of the NAACP. Read more »
  • Dedrick Muhammad is Senior Director for Economic Programs for the NAACP.  Dedrick comes out of a family rooted in the struggle for Civil Rights. His mother was a white Southern Civil Rights activist. His African American father, was born in segregated Arkansas, living through the struggle to end Jim Crow segregation. Read more »