United Way's new chief operating officer, Lawana Jones, brings 'unique perspective'

Victoria E. Freile, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
·2 min read

The United Way of Greater Rochester and the Finger Lakes last week named its new chief operating officer, and she's a homegrown familiar face.

Lawana Jones, a Gates resident who was born and raised in Rochester's 19th Ward, started the job on March 31.

Jones said that she's excited for her new role at the United Way, which supports 192 programs across a six-county area, "to ensure people’s basic needs are met, children have a safe place to learn, grow and thrive, and families can be financially stable."

"I’m looking forward to supporting this effort in ensuring our key impact areas of health, education and economic mobility are addressed," Jones said. "The world is evolving and changing, especially post-pandemic, and we have to ensure we are supporting the increasing needs and challenges faced by our community."

Lawana Jones is the Chief Operating Officer of The United Way of Greater Rochester and the Finger Lakes. She grew up in Rochester's 19th Ward.
Lawana Jones is the Chief Operating Officer of The United Way of Greater Rochester and the Finger Lakes. She grew up in Rochester's 19th Ward.

Jones, a graduate of the United Way’s African American Leadership Development Program and Leadership Rochester, most recently worked at L3Harris as the principal, continuous improvement lead and as a senior project manager. Before that, she served as the project director for information security services at Xerox.

She is also the president and CEO of the Autism Council of Rochester, which she created in 2005 to support autistic children and their families. Jones' daughter Marsche, now in her 30s, was a toddler when she was diagnosed with the complex neurodevelopment disorder, sparking Jones to become a passionate and vocal advocate for people with autism.

Jones is also active in community service, serving on several nonprofit boards and committees.

"With years of nonprofit and board service experience, I am extremely knowledgeable about the challenges that our community face," Jones said on Monday. "I have spent a considerable amount of time in the trenches and advocating for the most vulnerable in our city. This has given me a very unique perspective, and one that I bring to my new role at United Way."

Jaime Saunders, president and chief executive officer of the United Way of Greater Rochester and the Finger Lakes described Jones as a "talented and visionary executive" with more than two decades of experience in organizational management and 16 years of nonprofit leadership.

“Lawana brings a unique combination of corporate leadership and nonprofit insights along with continuous improvement and deep IT knowledge," Saunders said in a news release. "She is eager to use her talents and leadership skills to support our six-county region as we evolve to meet the local needs of our community now and into the future.”

Jones, the mother of two adult daughters, is a Certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt, Scrum Master and Agile Project Manager. She received her bachelor’s degree in business from Nazareth College, her MBA Certificate from the University of Rochester. She is currently working on a Ph.D. in transformational leadership from Bakke Graduate University, an online graduate university based out of Texas.

Contact Victoria Freile at vfreile@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @vfreile and Instagram @vfreile. This coverage is only possible with support from our readers.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Lawana Jones, the United Way's new chief operating officer, brings 'unique perspective'