Sandra Chipanta Named Executive Director of Outreach to Haiti
NORWICH — Diocese of Norwich Outreach to Haiti has welcomed Sandra Chipanta as its new Executive Director. Chipanta began her new role on October 1.
Chipanta brings more than a decade of experience in global public health, international development and program leadership, with extensive experience managing complex, multi-country initiatives in underserved communities. Most recently, she served as Senior Program Officer with the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, where she coordinated multidisciplinary teams supporting programs in several countries.
A practicing Catholic, Chipanta said the opportunity to lead Outreach to Haiti brings together her professional experience and her faith.
“The Gospel call to serve the poor and marginalized has shaped both my faith and my vocation, and I believe this role represents a rare and profound alignment of mission, skill and purpose.”
Throughout her career, Chipanta has worked with teams and partners across diverse cultures and countries. At Johns Hopkins, she helped lead community-based initiatives that reached more than five million people. Her experience includes strategic planning, program management, staff development, donor relations and building partnerships across organizations and communities.
Chipanta holds a Master of Public Health in Global Health Design, Monitoring and Evaluation from The George Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and French from Mount Holyoke College. She is fluent in English, French and Ewe.
Born in Togo and raised in the Roman Catholic Church, Chipanta immigrated to the United States with her family approximately 20 years ago. She lives in Berlin, Connecticut, with her husband and daughter. Inspired in part by her father, who was a pediatrician in Togo, she pursued a career in public health with an understanding that caring for people extends beyond medicine to care for the whole person.
Although she has not previously worked directly in Haiti, Chipanta said her international experience has prepared her to work in challenging and resource-constrained environments. She also brings significant experience developing community-centered programs and working across cultural boundaries.
As she begins her work with Outreach to Haiti, Chipanta has identified three priorities for her first months: “listen, learn and build trust.” She plans to begin by gaining a deeper understanding of the organization’s staff, programs, finances and strategic plans and then developing an action plan focused on its most pressing needs.
Dan O’Sullivan, Chair of the Board of Directors, said Chipanta brings the combination of professional experience and commitment to the Catholic faith that the organization sought in its new leader.
“We feel very blessed to have found Sandra to lead our organization. She has so many of the qualities and skills we were hoping for, including her demonstrated leadership, global health experience, working with multiple cultures in areas of great need, managing teams remotely and in person, and a great commitment to the Catholic faith and the essence of our shared ministry to the women, men and children of Haiti.”
Outreach to Haiti serves the people of Haiti through health care, nutrition, education and other community-based programs and fosters relationships between the Diocese of Norwich and the Church in Haiti through its parish-twinning ministry.
For more information about Diocese of Norwich Outreach to Haiti, visit OutreachToHaiti.org.