July 30, 2020
Lifecycle WomanCare Announces New Executive Director
Lifecycle WomanCare (LWC) is pleased to announce Kate McHugh as their new Executive Director.
Kate began serving as LWC’s Interim Executive Director in December 2019 and transitioned to her more permanent role in May 2020, becoming the organization’s 7th Executive Director. This decision comes after a rigorous search led by the LWC Board of Directors, staff, and other key stakeholders.
“Kate is a recognized midwifery educator, clinician, and program administrator returning to her roots in the Philadelphia region and at Lifecycle WomanCare,” says LWC Board President, Caryn Rivers. “She is known for her keen eye for opportunity and innovation and returns at a critical moment for the organization and the world. I am thrilled to welcome her back ‘home’ to LWC!”
During her time as interim, Kate’s creative leadership and forward thinking have helped LWC weather the storm brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, her unwavering dedication to LWC and extensive background in clinical midwifery make her the ideal person to spearhead the organization and lead LWC into the future.
In addition to midwifery, Kate has over three decades of expertise in maternal, newborn, and reproductive health care. Most recently, she served as a consultant on global health projects related to the midwifery and nursing workforce, and integration of community-based care with formal health systems, among other related initiatives.
Kate notes, “It is truly an honor that the Board asked me to stay and become the permanent Executive Director through 2022. LWC was influential to me years ago, when, as a young midwife on staff, I watched Sherley Young provide the radical leadership needed to start a birth center. While practicing midwifery at LWC I learned to ‘trust birth’ in a very powerful way. Over the years the LWC mission has become more encompassing, but the core values remain, especially the commitment to the midwifery model of care. The lessons I learned here as a staff midwife, birth client, Board member, and volunteer have served me well during my career. Now, years later, I hope to support and continue the tradition of strong, mission-centric administrative and clinical leadership that has been the hallmark of LWC for over 40 years.”
