President & COO – Kristi R. Cunningham

Kristi R. Cunningham became the President and Chief Operating Officer of VGL in August, 2006.  Cunningham has taken VGL from its infancy and set the organization on a clear growth trajectory by utilizing strategic partnerships and by providing excellent service to our customers. Cunningham brings over a decade of executive experience to her position, and a particular depth to the task of growing a small business.  Before joining VGL, she was a consultant to major corporations, helping them implement systems that fostered greater efficiencies.

Prior to her consulting, Cunningham was the President of a local nonprofit organization responsible for developing housing and providing community services to low-income neighborhoods.  She was responsible for achieving a financial turnaround of this distressed organization by increasing annual net income from ($400,000) in 2003 to $375,000 in 2004. She accomplished this by establishing and implementing higher program standards while applying rigorous fiduciary oversight and management.

As Director of Field Operations for a national intermediary, she managed a funding pool of over $65 million.  Ms. Cunningham began her career in Boston where she developed and taught economic development classes as adjunct faculty at UMass Boston, and at the Tufts University Community Development Summer Institute.

She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology/Anthropology with a concentration in Black Studies from Swarthmore College and a Master’s Degree in City Planning from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.