An important announcement from the
Chair of the AFS-USA Board of Directors, Joan B. Siegel
November 28, 2018
After almost 40 years of dedicated service to AFS, and upon deep reflection and conversations with the Board of AFS-USA, Jorge Castro has decided to embark on a new chapter in his life and will leave the position of President and Partner Director of AFS-USA on December 31, 2018. There are no words to adequately express my thanks to Jorge for almost 40 years of service to AFS and for his deep commitment to the mission and people of AFS.
As Jorge shared with me, “This has been the most rewarding and fulfilling career that I could ever have hoped for, and one that I will forever keep close to my heart. AFS was so much more than just a job; for me it was a way of living and a way to create friendships that will last until the end of my life. I will be forever grateful to all those I encountered along the way until this last stop. I had the unique good fortune of leading AFS in three different countries, having spent the last thirteen years at AFS-USA. I could not feel prouder of everything we achieved together since the AFS-USA Board entrusted me with the responsibility of leading the largest Partner in the AFS Network during a time of great uncertainty. I am so proud to leave AFS-USA with a strengthened volunteer-staff partnership, our debt to AFS International paid off, our operations consolidated in one location, AFS-USA again leading innovation in the Network, and so much more. My heartfelt gratitude goes to our wonderful volunteers, staff, the Executive Team, my Partner colleagues in the AFS Network, AFS International, our donors, members of the President’s Circle, and to the AFS-USA Board of Directors. Without your assistance and support, I could not have accomplished any of this important work.”
Jorge’s decision to move on leaves us all with a fresh reminder of everything he has done for AFS and his legacy of service to the organization and all stakeholders, volunteers, donors, staff, schools, families, and participants. We know that Jorge will bring this same dedication to the new challenges he takes on in the future.
I am very pleased to announce that Tara Boyce-Hofmann will be taking over as President and Partner Director. Tara has a long history with AFS both in the Network and with AFS-USA and has most recently served as the Chief Operating and Organizational Development Officer at AFS-USA. Before joining AFS-USA in 2011 as a staff member, Tara served as the Partner Director of AFS Hong Kong for almost nine years. Prior to that she worked at AFS International where she held various program and volunteer development roles and worked closely with many partners in Asia and Europe as their Organizational Development Consultant. Tara began her career at AFS-USA working in the Development Office and then advanced into the area of program management.
Since her return to AFS-USA, Tara has been an integral leader of the organization’s strategic development; she established the organizational development effort now underway, which focuses on developing new tools and resources for business analysis and technology and she oversees our program management, hosting operations, and support units, as well as new program development. The Board and I look forward to working with Tara as AFS-USA embarks on a new strategic planning process in synch with the Network Strategy.
The Board is very pleased and appreciative of the fact that we can all benefit from a smooth transition because of the strong working relationship that exists between Jorge and Tara.
Please join me in thanking Jorge and welcoming Tara.
Warmly,
Joan B. Siegel
Chair, AFS-USA Board of Directors