Fenway Health Hires a New CEO
Jordina Shanks, the new CEO, previously oversaw cuts to some Fenway Services.
Welcome to The Bay State Ladybug. Mainstream publications don’t serve queer people, so we do.
1. Fenway Health announced that they hired Jordina Shanks as their new CEO. Shanks previously was Fenway Health’s Chief Operating Officer, and had served as Fenway Health’s acting CEO starting in March. Her position is now permanent as of Thursday, June 13.
Shanks’ tenure has been marked by cuts to some of the programs Fenway Health operates. In April, Fenway Health announced that they would be closing Boomerangs, a chain of thrift stores that raised money for HIV prevention. Fenway Health justified the decision by noting that, for the past six years, Boomerangs stores have lost “significant” amounts of money.
In May, Fenway Health announced that they would make cuts to some of the services they offer to people living with HIV, claiming that “there are other… organizations in Greater Boston with the expertise and infrastructure to provide those services more efficiently.”
Scott Walker, the chair of Fenway Health’s board, said in a statement that Shanks “led and implemented strategies over the last 24 months that have dramatically improved the financial performance of the organization.”
2. The Massachusetts State House passed the Parantage Act on Wednesday, which updates laws about parents to be more inclusive of LGBT people and of parents who use surrogacy services. GLAD has provided a summary of the changes that the law would implement. The proposed legislation now will make its way to the Massachusetts State Senate.
This is the second post of The Bay State Ladybug, a brand new publication that aims to provide news for queer people in Massachusetts. Feel free to reach out at erindlisbacher@protonmail.com with any tips or feedback or just to say hello. You could also leave a comment under this post.