Nancy Withbroe
Chief of Staff, National Women’s Law Center
Nancy Withbroe (she/her) is Chief of Staff at the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) where she leads the Office of the President & CEO, guiding efforts to build and enhance the President & CEO’s external positioning and the strategic use of her time. She staffs the Boards of NWLC and the NWLC Action Fund and management’s leadership teams and enhances cross-organization collaboration with staff at all levels. Through a consistent approach to planning and evaluation, Nancy guides work to define and track metrics and set the organization-wide learning agenda. She provides thought partnership to the Office of the General Counsel and the DEI & Belonging team.
From 2017 through early 2023 Nancy also served as NWLC’s Chief Operating Officer, leading through a period of dramatic growth and change. She coached senior leaders and led initiatives that created a more consistent staff experience, advanced equity and inclusion, and ensured alignment with the strategic plan. She project-managed high-profile efforts such as the start-up phase of the TIME’S UP Legal Defense Fund and led negotiations with NWLC United on NWLC’s first collective bargaining agreement. During her prior tenure as NWLC’s Vice President for Development and Strategy, she diversified and substantially increased revenue, facilitated strategic planning, and staffed the Board.
Nancy has over 30 years’ experience working for nonprofits including Share Our Strength, the Greater Washington Community Foundation, and the Girl Scout Council of the Nation’s Capital. She holds an M.A. in educational leadership from American University and a B.A. in English and Women’s Studies from Carleton College. She has served on ProInspire’s Board for more than eight years, including two years as Chair and one year as Co-Chair. She is the founder and convener of an active network of social justice movement executives who lead organizational development, people and culture, finance, operations, board relations, and/or risk management.
What is something that you’re learning about?
Nancy is learning about virtual choirs and other ways to collaborate musically during quarantine.
Why are you on the ProInspire board?
She’s on the ProInspire board because she is passionate about imagining new ways to accelerate racial justice in the nonprofit sector, including the accountability boards have for sharing that work with staff and other stakeholders, and grateful for the opportunity to test and learn with the ProInspire team.