Shawn Escoffery 

Program Director, Strong Local Economies, Surdna Foundation
 

Shawn Escoffery is the Director of the Strong Local Economies Program at the Surdna Foundation. Previously Mr. Escoffery served as the Deputy Director of the New Orleans Neighborhood Development Collaborative (NONDC).  Mr. Escoffery has extensive experience in workforce and economic development from his previous senior management responsibilities with the City of Baltimore's Empowerment Zone and at New Community Corporation. Shawn also served as the Project Executive for a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development contract focused on improving access to technology and has worked internationally in China, Ecuador and Japan. Shawn Escoffery holds a Masters of City and Regional Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a concentration in Housing, Community, and Economic Development. He also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and English Literature from Rutgers University and certificates in Communications and International Relations, Urban Redevelopment and Effective leadership from Carnegie Mellon University, University of Pennsylvania and Duke University respectively.