Catherine Wilson is the President and CEO of United Way of Greater Newark, where she brings bold leadership, systems thinking, and deep community insight to drive innovative solutions. Since assuming the role in 2015, she has transformed the organization’s impact by focusing on education, health, and financial stability as levers for long-term systemic change.

A strategic convener and coalition-builder, Catherine is known for turning complex challenges into collaborative opportunities. She mobilizes the right people, partners, and policies to create meaningful and lasting change.

Prior to becoming CEO, Catherine spent five years at United Way of Greater Newark designing and evaluating community programs with a focus on grassroots empowerment. Her early career began in child welfare, where she advocated for youth in foster care through roles with the Division of Youth and Family Services and Essex County Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA). She designed the first CASA mentoring program in Essex County for youth aging out of foster care—an initiative that continues to inspire her commitment to upstream solutions and generational impact.

Catherine holds a B.A. in Communications from Rowan University and a Master’s in Social Work from Rutgers University. She also holds executive certificates in leadership from Harvard Kennedy School and finance from Harvard Business School.

In 2025, Catherine was selected as a Rockefeller Foundation Big Bets Fellow, joining a national cohort of visionary leaders working to scale transformative ideas that create economic opportunity.