Geoffrey Canada is stepping down as chief executive of the Harlem Children’s Zone after nearly 25 years as head of the acclaimed educational and social service organization.
Canada, 62, will turn over day-to-day operations to the organization’s chief operating officer, Anne Williams-Isom, on July 1, it was announced Monday.
Canada said he had been seeking his successor for several years and was leaving now to provide an orderly transition.
He praised Williams-Isom’s tough-minded leadership, dedication and a “capacity to love thousands of kids.”
She spearheaded an effort called HCZ Stat and has overseen much of the organization’s work for the past four years.
The nonprofit organization serves more than 12,000 children in both charter and traditional public schools. It was founded in 1970. Canada joined it in 1983 and became its chief executive in 1990.
It provides comprehensive support for children from birth through college, and for their families through charter schools and other programs.
It has served as a national model and helped inspire the US Department of Education’s Promise Neighborhoods program.