KEES Retained by Little City Foundation to Find New Leader

October 18, 2022 – Executive search and non-profit consulting firm KEES is seeking a new executive director for Little City Foundation in Chicago. Shawn Jeffers, having served and expanded Little City over the past 20 years, plans to retire after a new leader is identified. KEES president Heather Eddy and project coordinator Megan Taylor will lead the search. The new leader is expected to start in 2023. “Congratulations to Shawn Jeffers as he takes this exciting next step,” said Ms. Eddy. “I remember when Shawn came to the Chicagoland area from Springfield. He has since transformed Little City in almost every aspect. It is an honor to have been competitively selected to lead Little City into this stage of transition. We look forward to partnering with leadership in the coming months.”

KEES has a long history of placing accomplished executives within the Chicago metropolitan area and around Illinois. “KEES came highly recommended to the board during our succession planning process,” said Greg Burns, president of the board of directors. “The KEES team and their excellence in non-profit executive search stood out to us because they were familiar with our needs and understood the mission behind our caring community. We are thrilled to be in a partnership with KEES.”

Established as a non-profit in 1959, Little City’s mission is to serve children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities by providing the best options and opportunities to live safely, learn continuously, explore creatively, and work productively throughout their lifetime. Little City offers a portfolio of programs that include 24/7 supportive residential settings for children and adults, a therapeutic children’s day school, foster care and adoption, home-based family support, health and wellness services, and a variety of therapeutic day programs such as employment services, horticulture, fitness, and recreation.

Non-Profit Recruiters

KEES, based in Naperville, IL, focuses on building transformative teams and leaders in the non-profit sector. The firm was founded in 2013 as an expansion of Alford Executive Search. It is women-owned and operated, and provides a wide variety of services, including executive search, specialty and interim staffing, HR consulting, and leadership development.

Related: KEES Seeks Executive Director for Bay Area Urban Debate League

Ms. Eddy has worked with non-profits and institutions to build capacity for more than 20 years. For the past 12 years, she has focused on strengthening executives, boards, managers, and philanthropic leaders. She co-founded KEES and leads the organization’s team after serving for 17 years in multiple executive leadership roles with the Alford Group/Alford Group Executive Search, a national consulting firm that partners with non-profits and provides fundraising and organizational strategy consulting.

Ms. Taylor provides support to both client service work as well as marketing/sales for the firm. She supports team operations and ensures project timelines are moving forward. Bringing years of experience as a non-profit volunteer for Meals on Wheels and an AYSO youth soccer board member, she is skilled at database management as well as interpreting and utilizing data.

Recent Search

KEES recently recruited Lucretzia Jamiso as the new executive director of Youth Job Center (YJC), a youth workforce agency in Cook County, IL. “The entirety of Lucretzia’s professional experience has been in roles that help young people succeed,” said Ms. Eddy. “Her career is a true reflection of her dedication, determination, and commitment to helping youth and young adults find pathways to their future with equitable living wages. We congratulate the entire YJC community and are proud to be selected, again, as the search partner when Karen announced her transition plans.”

“We were seeking a strategic, visionary executive, and confident decision-maker to lead YJC through its next phase of growth and development,” said Doug Oettinger, board search committee chair. “The board of directors unanimously selected Lucretzia after a rigorous vetting and decision-making process. She brought complementary experience to YJC’s past and will swiftly lead us forward into the future and future opportunities to continue our impact for youth and young people.”

Related: KEES Recruits CEO for Youth Job Center

Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media