The search is on for the next president of United Way of the Ozarks. The Springfield-based nonprofit announced Greg Burris intends to retire June 30, 2024.
Burris has been at the helm of United Way of the Ozarks since 2019. He was the city manager of Springfield from 2008-2018.
“It has been my great honor and pleasure to lead the exceptional UWO team. I have learned much from them,” Burris said. “We are blessed with a top-notch Board of Directors, and we get to partner with community supporters and many dedicated nonprofit partners who perform inspirational work every day. What could be better than that?”
“We thank Greg for steering United Way of the Ozarks into our exciting next era,” said Dr. Joan Barrett, chair of UWO’s board of directors and vice chancellor of student affairs at Ozarks Technical Community College.
United Way is known for its Day of Caring, a one-day program that encourages workplaces to band together to do service projects across southwest Missouri. In recent years, UWO has introduced new community engagement programs including United for Greatness, Community Field Trips and, soon, Women United.
“UWO has adopted two areas of focus – Championing Children and Pathways Out of Poverty,” Barrett said in a press release Jan. 18. “(Burris) also led the reengineering of our community investment process to fund programs that address upstream challenges focused on the root cause of issues, support safety net programs providing crisis responses and introduce innovation programs.”
Before he worked for the City of Springfield, Burris spent 25 years with Missouri State University, including serving as vice president for administrative and information services. Moving forward, Burris will continue his affiliation with UWO as executive director of Give 5, the civic matchmaking program that introduces retirees to meaningful community volunteer opportunities.
“Greg led us in reinventing our organization while navigating the COVID pandemic and its aftermath, which was an exceptionally difficult time for nonprofits,” Barrett said. “He maximized efficiencies and better aligned resources in support of our strategic direction. As a result of his stewardship, United Way of the Ozarks is well-positioned for success in the years ahead.”
For more information about United Way of the Ozarks and the search for its next CEO, visit uwozarks.org/career-opportunities/.
