After 10 months without a permanent executive director, Hidden Villa announced Tuesday (Oct. 11) the hiring of Elliott Wright for the position.
Wright has spent his career working for climate-focused organizations, including the Los Altos-based Sempervirens Fund and as an outdoor educator for REI. Most recently, Wright served as executive director of the nonprofit Environmental Volunteers.
“The chance to join Hidden Villa at this important time – two years before we celebrate 100 years of making a difference in the Bay Area – is an incredible opportunity to bring all I’ve learned in my career and my environmental work to serve this wonderful organization,” Wright said.
Hidden Villa is recovering from a period of controversy, sparked by resignations and the last-minute cancellation of this year’s summer camps.
Camp director Phillip James and assistant director Mimi Elias resigned in June, on the eve of the first summer session, citing the Hidden Villa administration’s failure to address institutional and structural racism. Interim executive director Philip Arca resigned a few days later.
The administration’s reluctance to remove tiles with a swastika design on the exterior of Hidden Villa’s historical Duveneck House became a flashpoint, igniting tensions among the administration, James, Elias and other summer staff. The issue attracted national media attention.
The Hidden Villa Board of Directors approved Wright’s hiring unanimously, officials confirmed in a statement to supporters.
“(Wright’s) reputation as a strong, inclusive leader who leads diverse teams to make positive community impacts precedes him,” said board co-chairperson Jackie Radcliffe. “We look forward to his dynamic, collaborative and positive leadership, and know that he will be instrumental in ensuring Hidden Villa’s legacy moves forward to even bigger impact.”
Wright will begin work in early November.
