Priscilla Jeffrey
Executive Director
With many years of experience in non-profit management and education, Priscilla Jeffery currently heads up operations of WomensTrust in both the United States and Ghana.
Ms. Jeffery is the founder of CPASGhana (Community Partnership of Akuapim South), which she launched in 2010 to provide microfinance and educational scholarships to empower impoverished women and girls in Nsawam, Ghana. Within its first year CPASGhana provided microloans to more than 130 women running small enterprises, and supported 41 girls with scholarships, school uniforms and books.
The shared mission and vision of WomensTrust and CPASGhana led to the merger of the two organizations in November 2012, under the leadership of Ms. Jeffery as executive director. She works closely with the US Board of Directors and the WomensTrust staff in Pokuase and Nsawam, and directs all aspects of the organization’s expanded operations and programs in Ghana.
In addition to her background in non-profit organizational management, Ms. Jeffery is also an educator. She spent over 20 years teaching in urban Denver and rural Vermont schools. In addition to her classroom duties, she facilitated numerous student clubs, which focused on a variety of issues affecting young people. She also served in leadership positions in curriculum development, school-community partnerships, and violence and substance abuse prevention.
Ms. Jeffery’s passion for sustainable development grew from her experiences during her more than 20 years in Vermont living on a small organic farm, where she raised livestock, started and managed a local food cooperative, and was involved in a number of community organizations.
Jeffrey started CPASGhana after retiring from teaching. She had visited Ghana and subsequently became involved with the Ghanaian community in Denver. She decided to use the skills she had acquired over a lifetime to launch an organization devoted to empowering women and girls in Africa.
Ms Jeffery holds a bachelor’s degree in Education and Art from Wheelock College, and a master’s degree in Community Economic Development from the University of Southern New Hampshire. She also holds a certificate in Sustainable Microenterprise Development from the Carsey Institute.
