The National Center for Civil and Human Rights Board of Directors announced today it has appointed Jill Savitt as Chief Executive Officer effective March 11, 2019. Savitt, a genocide prevention expert, will resign as Acting Director for the Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Interim CEO, Brian Tolleson, will step down but continue serving on The Center's board.

"Jill Savitt has the distinct caliber and experience to lead The Center. Throughout last year, Brian has catapulted our operational and financial health, and Jill begins her tenure at a fantastic moment for us," said Shirley Franklin, former mayor of Atlanta and board chair. "A strategic visionary and an incisive communicator with a successful track record of human rights advocacy, Jill has the exceptional qualities to lead us when The Center is poised for a watershed moment."

Savitt said, "I am honored and excited to lead the National Center for Civil and Human Rights to advance our mission to empower people to promote and protect every human's rights. The Center is more vital than ever as a steward of Atlanta's civil rights legacy and as a conduit for education and action. I am eager to continue its efforts to transform the world."