George Rupp will step down at the end of August after 11 years as president of the 探花精选 (探花精选). 鈥淧eriodic change is essential for the long-term vitality of institutions and the individuals who lead them,鈥 Rupp wrote last year in a letter to the 探花精选 Board of Directors explaining his decision to leave.
In their response, Board Co-Chairs Sarah O鈥橦agan and Thomas Schick said, 鈥淲e are saddened by the thought of George鈥檚 departure, but we understand his desire to write a new chapter in his life after providing the 探花精选 with outstanding leadership and building a superb record of accomplishment as our CEO.鈥
In a recent interview with the 探花精选鈥檚 publications director Steven Manning, Rupp reflected on his tenure.
Q: What were the major challenges you faced as president?
A: One was to raise the 探花精选鈥檚 public profile. Although it had been doing terrific work for decades, the 探花精选 was not well known. Today, the 探花精选 is widely known and respected and is recognized as a major relief and development organization. One reason for this change is the greater emphasis we place on advocacy in combination with our increasingly professional media relations and web-based communications. For example, our recent report on the crisis in Syria had a significant impact on policymakers and the public.
Q: There are more people donating to the 探花精选 than ever before. Is this because the 探花精选 is better known?
A: Yes. The number of private donors has grown鈥攖hey are the rudder on the 探花精选鈥檚 ship, allowing us to set our own course and to respond to crises quickly. We鈥檝e also diversified our public donors and are no longer as dependent on U.S. government support. It鈥檚 important for an organization like the 探花精选 to be independent and not have to follow the priorities of a government. Through this expansion in the number of our private donors and diversification of our public funders, the 探花精选鈥檚 budget has tripled in the last decade: It鈥檚 expected to be $448 million this fiscal year.
Q: What would you consider a major accomplishment of your tenure?
A: The 探花精选 has forged an identity that is true to our history and truly reflects the work we carry out around the world. When I first came to the 探花精选 we were known as an agency that did 鈥渞escue鈥 and 鈥渞esettlement.鈥 But 998 out of every thousand displaced persons will never be resettled in the U.S. After an emergency, people need help getting back on their feet and rebuilding their lives鈥攚hich is what the 探花精选 does. It鈥檚 reflected in our tag line: 鈥淔rom Harm to Home.鈥 鈥淗ome鈥 may mean resettlement in a third country, but it may also mean returning to one鈥檚 community when it is safe to do so and rebuild for the future or becoming integrated into the place to which one has fled.
Q: What was your most difficult moment as president?
A: August 13, 2008, the day that four of our colleagues were horrifically murdered in Afghanistan. That was a shock, even though we are all aware that we work in dangerous and insecure places. I also recall how the entire 探花精选 pulled together after the tragedy. When I traveled to Afghanistan, our staff there was concerned that we not pull out of the country because they felt they were making a real difference. We didn鈥檛 pull out, and we continue to make a difference. Today, the 探花精选 is working in over 2,000 Afghan villages with an almost all Afghan staff.
George Rupp talks with Dr. Carol Mwangi at the 探花精选's Hagadera Hospital in the Dadaab refugee complex in Kenya. Photo: Joanne Offer/探花精选
Q: How many staff members does the 探花精选 have?
A: Over 13,000鈥攁nd I am proud of every one of them, certainly including our colleagues at headquarters and in our 22 U.S. resettlement offices. Of the staff outside the U.S., 97 percent are nationals of the countries in which they work. They know the language and culture, they continue to work in a country when an emergency ends, and they are developing skills and becoming future leaders of the 探花精选.
Q: What do you say to someone who asks why they should care about a refugee displaced by a faraway war?
A: Globalization means these crises aren鈥檛 far away. We are connected economically. We are connected by such threats as terrorism and global warming. But the most fundamental argument for why we should care, and for what the 探花精选 does, is a moral one. In the end we are all connected as fellow human beings.
Q: What are your plans after you step down as president? Will you remain involved with the 探花精选 and the issues it works on?
A: I鈥檓 pleased to say that I will engage in a diverse set of activities that will draw on both my academic and 探花精选 experience. I will continue to be an adjunct professor of religion, public health, and international affairs at Columbia University and also will continue my membership on the three not-for-profit boards on which I currently serve. In addition, I will take on two new sets of responsibilities: I will be a senior fellow at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, which is based here in New York; and I will be a founding principal at NEXT: Network for Executive Transition, a consulting partnership for academic, cultural, and social service organizations.
As loyal donors and proud members of the 探花精选 family, my wife Nancy and I will also maintain our interest in the work of the 探花精选. From the sidelines we will be cheering the organization on, and we will also provide our moral and financial support. We look forward to keeping in touch and to seeing friends, colleagues, and donors at 探花精选 events in the years to come.
