The Cleveland Council on World Affairs Announces Jenni Carney as its Chief Operating Officer

The Cleveland Council on World Affairs (CCWA) is thrilled to announce the promotion of Jenni Carney as CCWA’s new Chief Operating Officer effective July 1, 2025.

Jenni joined CCWA in 2012 as its first dedicated development professional.  Over the years, Jenni grew the development, marketing and outreach department at CCWA into a high-performing center of nonprofit excellence. Jenni began her CCWA journey as the Membership and Development Coordinator in November 2012, to help manage membership and develop community support for CCWA. She was promoted to Manager in 2014 then Director of Development and Marketing in July 2019. Jenni played an instrumental role in the success of CCWA’s Centennial in 2023, co-leading planning efforts and spearheading centennial fundraising efforts. Thanks to her leadership, CCWA was able to raise over $600,000 during its Centennial campaign. She was promoted to Senior Director in January 2023, gradually increasing the scope of responsibilities and serving as the de facto second-in-command on the CCWA staff team.

A native of Finland, Jenni has a master’s degree in political science from the University of Helsinki, with a concentration in international relations. She moved to Cleveland in 2006 and has always been passionate about sharing her interest and enthusiasm for international affairs and world cultures with everyone in Cleveland. “There is so much alignment between who I am and what I believe in as a global citizen and the work that we do every day at CCWA,” says Jenni. “I am 150% committed to the mission and success of CCWA. To be part of an organization that has been inspiring global engagement for over a century is deeply meaningful to me. I especially love the fact that we help light that spark of global curiosity for students in schools all across Northeast Ohio,” she added.

With a view to strengthening CCWA’s operations, the Board of Directors voted to establish a new Chief Operating Officer role. The Board also unanimously voted to promoted Jenni into the role. “Jenni has made so many valuable contributions to CCWA that she has truly become both the heart of the organization and its institutional memory. Jenni is the connective tissue at CCWA,” says Paul Clark, Chair of the Board. “The Board was unanimous in its decision to promote Jenni to the role of Chief Operating Officer in recognition of her exceptional dedication to our work. It was also a well-deserved recognition of the leadership role that she is already playing on the staff team in managing day-to-day operations. The Board is very much looking forward to working with her in this new leadership role.”

The mission of the Cleveland Council on World Affairs is to inspire engagement in international affairs and world cultures through education, citizen diplomacy, and public dialogue. CCWA’s programs include speaker forums, global education programs varying from student programs to professional development, and international exchanges. For more information, visit www.ccwa.org.