Moves in Philanthropy: Kara Stimpson Named CEO of Covenant House Georgia

Atlanta’s nonprofit leadership landscape is welcoming a familiar face back to the city as Covenant House Georgia prepares for its next chapter.

The organization has named Kara Stimpson its new Chief Executive Officer, effective August 24, 2026, following a national search. Stimpson, the unanimous choice of the search committee, brings more than two decades of experience across education and nonprofit leadership, with a career focused on expanding opportunities for children, young people and families.

Most recently, Stimpson served as CEO of Helping People Succeed, a Florida nonprofit providing early childhood education, mental health, disability and child-abuse prevention services to more than 8,000 people annually. Before that, she was Chief Impact Officer at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta, where she developed and scaled a school-based mentoring model. She also spent nearly two decades with Atlanta Public Schools as a teacher, principal and district leader, including establishing Georgia’s first school-based Wraparound Center in a middle school.

Atlanta continues to confront a significant homelessness challenge. The city’s 2025 Point-in-Time count identified 2,894 people experiencing homelessness, including 1,061 people living unsheltered. While chronic homelessness declined, the number of families experiencing homelessness increased, underscoring the instability facing many young people and households across the region.

For young people, homelessness can also create heightened vulnerability to exploitation. Covenant House Georgia reports that 49% of youth experiencing homelessness have been sexually exploited, while 42% have experienced childhood abuse. Georgia’s Attorney General also identifies human trafficking—including commercial sexual exploitation and labor servitude—as a continuing concern across the state.

Founded in 2000, Covenant House Georgia has served more than 19,000 young people experiencing homelessness and escaping trafficking. Today, it serves more than 1,100 young people annually, providing housing and comprehensive supportive services designed to help youth move toward stable, independent lives.

Stimpson’s experience working across schools, mentoring systems, family support and human services could be really valuable because youth homelessness rarely stems from a single issue. Housing instability can intersect with family conflict, abuse, disrupted education, mental-health needs, unemployment and exposure to violence or exploitation. Effective intervention requires more than a bed—it requires a coordinated network of support.

That’s where Covenant House Georgia comes in. By pairing housing with individualized services and ongoing support, the organization can help young people address immediate crises while building the skills, resources and connections needed for long-term independence.

Stimpson will lead a 94-member staff and work alongside a 24-member board, more than 2,400 volunteers and approximately 3,500 donors. She succeeds interim CEO Keith D. Bostick, who stepped into the role after Dr. Alie Redd concluded nearly eight years of leadership.

For Atlanta’s philanthropic community, Stimpson’s appointment places an experienced youth-development leader at the helm of an organization addressing two of the region’s most urgent and interconnected challenges.

Her next chapter will be about turning experience into pathways to safety, stability and possibility for Atlanta’s young people.