On a sunny October afternoon, Adrian E. Bracy walked across Saint Louis University’s bustling campus to the YWCA Metro St. Louis office, where she has served as CEO since August 2009.
As she entered the YWCA building, surrounded by SLU dining halls and departments, she joked, “I went from the NFL to the NFP (not for profit).”
Although she doesn’t have a view of NFL football fields anymore, her office is a stone’s throw away from SLU’s soccer fields, she said, laughing.
For more than 20 years, Bracy worked as a senior financial executive with professional sports teams, including the St. Louis Rams, Arizona Cardinals and the Miami Dolphins/ Joe Robbie Stadium.
“I’ve had several people ask why I would leave the NFL to work in nonprofit,” Bracy said. “The reason is simple: My passion is helping women. I feel that working for the YWCA is my purpose in life at this moment.”
Bracy will receive the St. Louis American Foundation’s 2013 Non-Profit Executive of the Year award at the Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon, to be held Thursday, November 14 at the Ritz-Carlton in Clayton. The networking reception begins at 11 a.m. and the luncheon program starts at noon.
Bracy believes her transition into the nonprofit world really began in 2007.
After working as an executive for the St. Louis Rams for more than a decade, Bracy decided she wanted to do something different. So in 2007 she joined the Arizona Cardinals as the team’s chief financial officer.
“After about six months, I wasn’t feeling fulfilled in my career,” she said. “Two years later, I heard about the position opening at the YWCA in St. Louis, and here I am four years later.”
The YWCA mission’s is “eliminating racism and empowering women,” and that fits right in with Bracy’s personal goals, she said. Her strong financial management background prepared her for her journey in leading the organization to achieving its goals.
“I think it’s important for any CEO or executive director to understand finance,” she said. “Although we call it ‘nonprofit,’ every organization or business must make a profit in order to stay viable.”
She is especially proud that the organization recently secured a $106,000 grant from the St. Louis Office for Developmental Disability Resources. The funds go towards the SHADE program, which stands for Sexual Health and Disability Education.
“It’s the first grant of its kind in St. Louis,” she said. “Sometimes people with disabilities are most vulnerable when it comes to sexual assault. So this grant provides sexual assault education to people with developmental disabilities, along with their families and parents.”
The YWCA cites a published report that studied adults who have developmental disabilities and found that 83 percent of females and 32 percent of males were victims of sexual assault.
“We’ve been able to show that the participants have learned what’s good and what’s bad with sexual violence and sex education,” she said. “The program has had an impact.”
The YWCA Metro St. Louis serves more than 20,000 women and their families through its sexual assault center, 10 Head Start centers, teen activities, transitional housing and afterschool programs.
“What I really love about my job is knowing that we are making a positive change in the lives of women and their families,” Bracy said. “The vision I have for the YWCA is that it would be recognized as the leading nonprofit for women and that we would be the voice for every woman.”
She sees women finding their voices in the organization’s various programs. For example, in the transitional housing program, the YWCA gives women 24 months to become self-sufficient.
“When the women leave the program, they have found their voice because they are debt-free,” she said. “Being financially independent, that’s finding your voice.”
Another way that the YWCA helps women to become financial stable is through the Head Start program.
“We not only help our children, we also help our parents,” she said. “Over 25 percent of our teachers were once Head Start parents. We supply them with substitute training that would lead them to a permanent job, and we encourage them to go back and get their degrees.”
Bracy herself graduated from Morgan State University in Baltimore with a degree in accounting and has an MBA from Nova Southeastern University. She also has completed the Harvard Business School and Stanford Graduate School of Business Executive Leadership Programs.
She said her biggest supporter is her husband, Vernon Bracy. On October 2, they celebrated their 15th wedding anniversary. “He has supported me from day one,” she said. She and her husband have one son, Donovan.
Bracy has received numerous awards throughout her career, including the African-American Women of Distinction Award, Black Enterprise 50 Most Powerful Blacks in Sports Award, Black Enterprise 50 Most Powerful Black Women in Business, St. Louis Business Journal Most Influential Business Women Award, and the YWCA Leaders of Distinction Award in Corporate Management.
Bracy believes that the YWCA can only reach its goals by partnering with area organizations.
“The advice I would give to other nonprofit executives in the industry is to collaborate,” she said. “More and more donors are requesting proof of collective impact and collaboration. In order for the nonprofit world to survive, it’s important that we collaborate with each other.”
The 14th Annual Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon will be held Thursday, November 14, 2013 at the Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis, networking reception at 11 am, luncheon program at noon. Tickets are $100 for VIP/Preferred seating, $75 for general admission. Call 314-533-8000 or visit www.stlamerican.com for more information or to purchase tickets.
