Heidi Brooks, MA, MBA

Heidi Brooks, MA, MBA joined NICHQ’s executive team as Chief Operating Officer (COO) in 2020. Her key responsibilities include management of the general and administrative functions of the organization, including finance, operations, human resources, and facilities management. She is responsible for implementing effective processes to manage, measure and report on organizational capacity and to ensure appropriate fiscal management and budget oversight.

She most recently served as COO of YouthBuild USA, the support center for nearly 300 programs in the US and abroad serving 16- to 24-year-old “opportunity youth” who are not working or in school. Prior to joining YouthBuild, Heidi led finance, operations, programs, strategy and evaluation as Chief Operating Officer of the Schott Foundation for Public Education, a charitable intermediary investing in education justice.

Brooks spent the previous eight years in corporate philanthropy in two roles: head of the Citizens Bank Foundation, where she worked with the CEO to set strategy for the $18 million Foundation and launched the innovative Citizens Helping Citizens employee giving campaign; and as Director of Community Relations at John Hancock Financial Services, where she oversaw $11 million in cash and in-kind giving annually and expanded the MLK Summer Scholars program.

Brooks started her career in international development, working in 15 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America managing, designing, and auditing anti-poverty programs for the World Bank and several large NGOs. She holds a B.A. from the University of South Carolina, an M.A. from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. Brooks has been active with a number of nonprofits and foundations, including Economic Mobility Pathways and chairing the Governance Committee of the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation.