After nearly a year of searching for new leadership and reorganizing for more effective implementation of our mission, the UUSC Board of Trustees is pleased to announce the appointment of a new president and chief executive officer to lead the Service Committee into the future. With an unwavering focus on UUSC's mission to advance justice worldwide, our new president brings enormous energy, dedication and a life-long commitment to human rights and social justice.
Please welcome Dr. Charlie Clements, a human rights and public health advocate with over 20 years experience in developing and leading mission-driven service and advocacy organizations. He is well known and respected both internationally and in UU leadership circles as an ethical, inspiring, and effective leader.
The search committee had a number of excellent candidates and a difficult choice to make. It sought a leader with a commitment to Unitarian Universalist principles and values as well as UUSC's mission; demonstrated experience in public policy advocacy at local and international levels; strategic planning experience and a track record of building successful organizations. Equally important is the ability to communicate effectively with all of UUSC's audiences, including Service Committee members and supporters, ministers and congregation members, our association's leadership, Service Committee staff and leadership, other social justice leaders, political leadership and the philanthropic community.
We felt that Charlie has the best combination of skills, experience and passion for our work, with a strong international background, hands-on organizational leadership skills, a proven history of meeting goals, and a lifelong commitment to helping people to help themselves.
Charlie is also familiar with the UUSC and Unitarian Universalist mission and culture. He served as director of human rights education at UUSC from 1986-88. While at the Service Committee he spoke in more than 40 congregations, led several of our human rights delegations to Central America, and provided congressional testimony on several occasions. For the past seven years he has been the CEO and President of Border WaterWorks, which assists southwestern communities without running water and sewer systems to construct such desperately needed infrastructure.
Charlie has served on the boards of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) and Physicians for Human Rights (PHR). As president of PHR Charlie represented the organization at both the Treaty to Ban Landmines signing and the Nobel prize ceremonies for the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, which PHR helped found and lead.
Charlie is the recipient of numerous human rights awards, including the New England Circle Catherine A. Dunfey Award for demonstrated leadership in a pressing human or social condition and the Letelier‑Moffitt Human Rights Award. Charlie and his wife, Gigi Wizowaty, have two young children, Eric and Jesse.
Click below to see Charlie's biography and a presentation that he recently shared with the UUSC board members. They will give you a sense of his passion, dedication and perspectives.
Biography of Dr. Charlie Clements
An open letter from Charlie Clements
Please join the board and staff in rejoicing at our good fortune and the new opportunities for visibility, teamwork and effective programs that Charlie's leadership will help UUSC to achieve.