The Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children (PPC) Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Kari King will become the President and CEO of organization effective January 1, 2019. Kari brings a strong and successful track record of working on complex issues with diverse constituency groups to her new position. She has served as the PPC Vice President of Public Policy for more than three years where she successfully led our policy development and non-partisan government relations efforts. “PPC is nationally recognized as a leader for its efforts over the years in support of children. No doubt with the hiring of Kari King as the next President and CEO, this strong legacy of advocacy will continue well into the future” said Michael G. Warfel, PPC Board Chair and Vice President, Government Affairs, Highmark Inc.
Kari joined PPC in April 2015. She previously served in various positions in former Gov. Tom Corbett’s administration, starting as the Legislative Director for the Pennsylvania Insurance Department. From there, she was promoted to Deputy Secretary for Legislative Affairs in the governor’s office and ultimately rose to the position of Deputy Chief of Staff. As Deputy Chief of Staff, Kari concentrated on health care, insurance and human services issues in the governor’s office.
Prior to entering state government, she worked in government affairs for a three-state trade association representing insurance brokers, as well as for the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry. “I am excited and deeply honored to lead PPC’s work following Joan’s exemplary leadership of the organization for nearly twenty-five years. PPC is well-situated to continue its respected non-partisan, data-driven work that serves as a key resource for statewide policymakers.”
The PPC Board of Directors formed a Search Committee immediately following current President and CEO Joan Benso’s retirement announcement at the end of 2017. They engaged Raffa, Inc. a Washington, DC based firm, to conduct the search. After a careful and in depth process of outreach to key advisors designed to advise the characteristics of the organization’s future leader, Raffa conducted a national search that yielded a very large pool of highly-qualified candidates. Candidates took part in multiple firm screenings and committee interviews before the committee chose finalists. At the end of the process, the PPC Search Committee was fully confident that Kari was the best candidate to fill the position and their recommendation to the PPC Board of Directors was unanimously approved.
Joan will remain with the organization until the new year to support Kari’s transition, including introducing her to many key PPC stakeholders, such as you.
Joan shared the following, “One of the great honors of my life has been to lead this remarkable organization for nearly 25 years. I have no doubt that Kari will carry on our strong tradition of successfully impacting public policy to improve the lives of for children and youth in Pennsylvania. When I reflect back on our accomplishments, one thing is very clear – the work is predicated on the dedication and commitment of our many colleagues. I trust that you will continue your invaluable partnership with Kari and the full PPC team to make Pennsylvania one of the top ten states in the nation to be a child and to raise child.”