GMHC's executive
director steps down

The executive director of New York's Gay Men's Health Crisis announced Thursday that she will step down. Ana Oliveira, who joined the center's staff in 1996, said in a statement that she wants to "pursue other professional interests." An interim executive director is set to be named by the board of directors within 30 days. "My work at the agency has been extremely rewarding," Oliveira said. "I am proud of our successes in the struggles against homophobia, stigma, poverty, and gender inequities, societal factors that fuel the HIV epidemic, and am also proud of those who participate in these struggles--the board, staff, volunteers, and, most of all, people living with HIV and AIDS, who live the struggle every day." Oliveira will stay at GMHC into early 2006 and will assist the board of directors and the agency's senior management with the transition process. "During her tenure she saw GMHC through its recovery from its biggest organizational crisis and positioned it as an agency with strong fiscal integrity, innovative programs, and wide-ranging services to enhance the lives of people living with and affected by HIV and AIDS," said GMHC board chair John Colon. "Ana will be greatly missed and remembered with great respect and affection." Oliveira joined the staff of GMHC in 1996 to create a women's department, where she developed the targeted prevention, education, and early-intervention services for women at risk of and/or affected by HIV. She also oversaw the Lesbian AIDS Project and implemented programs for women of color. Her leadership strengthened GMHC's organizational capacity, launched new programs in HIV prevention and community-level interventions, and established significant new initiatives in response to the expanding needs of the epidemic. Notable among them are the Institute for Gay Men's Health, a national partnership with AIDS Project Los Angeles, the Women's Institute, and the agency's Return to Work Program. (Advocate.com)