New York Cares Appoints Arlene Lozano As Chief Program Officer

New York Cares, the city’s leading volunteer management organization committed to driving community impact through volunteerism.

Today announced the appointment of Arlene Lozano as the organization’s next chief program officer, effective today.

Lozano brings more than twenty years of experience in program management and process improvement for domestic and international organizations serving vulnerable populations, including Orbis International and Covenant House International.

For the past several years, Lozano has held multiple senior management roles at Orbis International, a non-profit dedicated to saving sight worldwide. First as director of monitoring & evaluation and most recently as vice president of monitoring, evaluation & learning (MEL) and quality assurance (QA), she led program and business development strategies to strengthen the organization’s operations in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

“Arlene’s deep experience in shaping programming for mission-driven organizations across the world makes her the right leader to shape the next phase of New York Cares’ service opportunities while leading key relationships with new and returning community partners and volunteers,” said New York Cares Executive Director Sapreet K. Saluja. “Since my first conversation with Arlene, I was impressed by her strategic thinking, successes in leveraging change through program management, and her passion for developing thoughtful initiatives to address disparities and social injustice.”

“New York Cares is an incredibly compassionate organization with programs that support vulnerable New Yorkers every day and especially during a crisis, including the last two years of the pandemic,” said Lozano. “I am honored to have the opportunity to work alongside New York Cares’ remarkable staff and volunteers, and strive to expand its impactful programming areas while addressing the evolving needs of our communities and promoting a sense of belonging for all New Yorkers through service.”

Prior to joining Orbis, Lozano was the vice president of research, evaluation and learning at Covenant House International, a non-profit that provides housing and supportive services to youth facing homelessness, where she drove change across regional projects, while expanding leadership and program management models across shelters in the United States and Canada.

During her tenure, she directed Latin America regional operations for four shelters serving as safe havens for hundreds of children and young adults, while overseeing site budgets and managing grants for the organization awarded by the Department of State Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking.

 Earlier in her career, Lozano served in senior roles at the Primary Care Development Corporation and Fund for the City of New York.

She received her M.A. in International Affairs: Economic and Political Development from Columbia University, School of International & Public Affairs and her B.A. in International Affairs and Sociology from University of California, Irvine.

Over the course of her career, Lozano has visited and worked in over 30 countries.

In 2021, New York Cares distributed more than 63,000 coats and nearly 263,000 meals to New Yorkers in need during its 33^rd annual coat drive.

Through its Stand with Students education campaign last fall, the organization distributed 15,000 backpacks filled with school supplies and other essentials to students and families in New York City’s community schools.

Over the course of the pandemic, New York Cares has trained and connected tens of thousands of volunteers to virtual and on-the-ground projects that address urgent needs, including food insecurity, homelessness, mental health and educational inequities.

Volunteers have helped distribute more than 56 million meals since the pandemic began and made nearly 90,000 phone calls to veterans, seniors, and isolated New Yorkers.

New York Cares

As the largest volunteer network in NYC, New York Cares harnesses the passions of caring New Yorkers to build a more equitable city.

Each year, tens of thousands of New Yorkers make the city a better place by volunteering in programs at nonprofits and schools – improving education, meeting immediate needs, and revitalizing public spaces. Since the pandemic began, New York Cares volunteers have helped distribute more than 56 million meals, conducted 87,000 calls to individuals experiencing social isolation, and supported students and educators through virtual programming.

For more information, visit newyorkcares.org.