Kim Janey joined The Community Builders (TCB) board of directors in 2023. She currently serves as president and chief executive officer of Economic Mobility Pathways (EMPath), a national nonprofit organization dedicated to helping families experiencing poverty dramatically improve their economic mobility.
Prior to leading EMPath, Kim made history when she was sworn in as Boston’s first woman and first Black mayor, successfully leading the city through a multitude of unprecedented challenges, including the COVID-19 global pandemic. Kim began her tenure with a citywide agenda of recovery, reopening, and renewal to address systemic inequities exposed and exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Kim re-opened Boston’s economy and its public schools by centering equity and prioritizing health and wellness. She invested millions to support small businesses, expanded protections for renters and homeowners, and launched fare-free public transit. Under Mayor Kim’s leadership, Boston experienced its safest summer in five years and became one of the most vaccinated big cities in America. Prior to leading her city as Mayor, she led the most diverse City Council in Boston’s history, where she authored groundbreaking legislation.
Devoting her life to public service, Kim has 30 years of experience in the non-profit sector. In her role at Massachusetts Advocates for Children, Kim championed systemic policy reforms to increase equity, excellence, access, and opportunity in Boston Public Schools. Prior to that, Kim worked as a community organizer, advocating for affordable, quality childcare.
Kim was recently named as a 2023 Aspen Institute Ascend Fellow where she and her cohort are working to advance the prosperity and well-being of children and families across the United States. Previously, Kim served as a spring 2022 resident fellow at the Institute of Politics at the Harvard Kennedy School where she designed and led a study group entitled Racial Justice and Recovery: Leading American Cities to a More Equitable Future. She also served as an inaugural fellow at the Berry Institute of Politics at Salem State University and as a Menschel Senior Leadership Fellow at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Kim holds honorary doctorate degrees from Simmons University in Boston and Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston.
Kim serves on several nonprofit boards including the Rappaport Institute Advisory Board. She has been recognized for her years of service with numerous awards, including the ARCKBoston Global Citizenship Award, the Mass Dems Eleanor Roosevelt Award, BAAF Champion Award, Boston NAACP Difference Maker Award, the Sapphire Award, and the Jewish Community Relations Legislative Leadership Award.
