Capping a week of significant changes for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, the city’s largest provider of HIV and other health services to the LGBTQ community has named an interim CEO. It comes just days after the nonprofit quietly laid off 17 staff members.
Kevin Rogers, previously the foundation’s chief financial officer, will serve as its interim CEO beginning May 7. He is succeeding Joe Hollendoner, a gay man who had announced in January that he would resign in May in order to join the staff of the Los Angeles LGBT Center in July.
As the Bay Area Reporter previously reported, Hollendoner will ascend to CEO there in July 2022. He is succeeding lesbian longtime CEO Lorri L. Jean, who is retiring.
The appointment Wednesday of Rogers to lead SFAF as it searches for a permanent CEO came a day after the B.A.R. broke the news about the staff layoffs at the agency. In response to the B.A.R.’s queries, Hollendoner had confirmed the downsizing of the nonprofit’s 200+ workforce.
The staff cuts were due to “impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic and associated declines in revenue,” according to Chad Ngo, the foundation’s communications manager. Four leadership positions were among those eliminated.
Rogers has been with SFAF since 2019. As his bio states on the nonprofit’s website, he and his partner live with their twin daughter and son in the city’ LGBTQ Castro district, where the agency’s health center Strut is located.
According to a May 5 email to supporters, he was previously CFO and chief operations officer for the California Water Environment Association and president of an early-stage online business developed by the International Association of Business Communicators. Rogers also served as director of technology and chief information officer for GE Capital’s San Francisco-based global container leasing entity.
SFAF has not immediately responded to a request for the B.A.R. to interview Rogers. The agency has yet to release Rogers’ compensation as interim CEO.
“It is an honor to serve as the interim CEO for SFAF as the organization conducts the search for the foundation’s next CEO,” Rogers stated in the email. “In my time here at the organization, I have gained a deep appreciation for the incredible work SFAF does in the community and for clients. I look forward to providing leadership as we continue to advance our mission of health justice.”
In a farewell statement released early Thursday morning, Hollendoner did not specifically reference the layoffs but did state “challenges still exist … but I’m confident in this organization’s ability to weather any storm.”
He did tout other benchmarks.
“Some of the accomplishments I’m proudest of include: Launching new programs to address the urgent needs of people experiencing homelessness and people who inject drugs. Deepening our commitment to long-term survivors so the first generation of AIDS activists can age with dignity, [and] transforming our programs and services so that community members most impacted by HIV today, especially communities of color, are prioritized,” Hollendoner stated.
“It is with sincere and heartfelt gratitude that I say thank you for supporting our work, and the lives of the more than 25,000 clients we serve,” he added. “Leading San Francisco AIDS Foundation with its talented and dedicated employees and volunteers has been an incredible experience that has meant so much to me professionally as well as personally.”
Rogers thanked Hollendoner for his time as CEO; he took over in 2016 after serving as first deputy commissioner at the Chicago Department of Public Health.
“The example provided by Joe in both his commitment to our clients as well as our staff will be a source of inspiration to me as I serve in this interim role,” Rogers said. “I would like to thank Joe for his fearless leadership and confidence in me to serve in this capacity until the Board selects the next CEO.”
The foundation’s board of directors has appointed a search committee of members to oversee the selection of the next CEO. Russell Reynolds and Associates, a global leadership film, will be assisting.
“The board of directors is very pleased to name Kevin as interim CEO,” board co-chairs Douglas Brooks and Maureen Watson stated. “Kevin’s many years of management and leadership experience, his commitment to SFAF, and his passion and enthusiasm for the mission of the organization make him the perfect candidate to shepherd the organization through this time of change.”
According to an annual financial report the foundation published for Fiscal Year 2019-2020, SFAF had a revenue of $52.0 million and expenses of $48.9 million. Hollendoner’s salary and benefits at the time totaled $376,430, according to the document.
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