New Children’s Aid Society Chief Prepares to Take Reins

Richard H. Buery Jr., the new head of New York’s venerable Children’s Aid Society, will have to handle fund-raising challenges that face many other nonprofit groups in the recession, notes The New York Times in a profile article.

Mr. Buery, who takes office next month, is the first black person to lead the 150-year-old charity noted for its work in foster care, teenage-pregnancy prevention, education, health, and the arts. At 37 he is nearly three decades younger than his predecessor and has forged his career building new nonprofit organizations from the ground up rather than taking over existing groups.

“It’s not a place that’s broken and needs to be fixed,” Mr. Buery said. “I approach this work with a great deal of humility. I mean, there are people at Children’s Aid who know a lot more about their work than I do.”

Nonetheless, the organization laid off 45 people this year and has cut its budget by $4-million as the recession has battered its revenue.

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