Michelle Braun has been named president and CEO of the United Way of Northeast Florida, effective July 1.
She will succeed longtime president Connie Hodges, who will retire at the end of the
year.
Braun was named the local chapter’s chief operating officer last summer and previously served in senior-level positions at Wells Fargo, Wachovia and Bank of America.
Board Chair George Scanlon said in a Thursday news release that “Michelle was the most outstanding” of the more than 170 applicants.
Braun earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame and a master’s degree in nonprofit management from The Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western University.
She came to Northeast Florida in 1999 and led a record-setting campaign as vice president of resource development at the United Way, the news release said, and remained engaged by serving as a board member and RealSense chair.
“I look forward to serving our community and building on the great work of United Way of Northeast Florida,” Braun said in the release.
Hodges will transition responsibilities to Braun during the next few weeks and after July 1 will oversee philanthropic outreach until she retires at the end of December.
The local chapter of the nonprofit provides leadership, resources and focus to create improvements in education, income and health in the community.