Sharon Sewell-Fairman has over 25 years of workforce and economic development experience at the local, state, and national levels. She was appointed President and CEO of Women Creating Change (WCC) on March 15, 2023. Sewell-Fairman will position WCC at the forefront of civic engagement work in New York City. She is personally motivated to advance WCC’s mission and support initiatives to reduce social, racial, and economic disparities.
Sewell-Fairman was formerly the Chief Executive Officer of Workforce Professionals Training Institute (WPTI). During her tenure at WPTI, she steered the organization through a decade of innovation and sustained growth, including the transition of WPTI to its status as a free-standing and thriving 501c3 nonprofit from its previous state as a fiscally sponsored partner project of an umbrella organization. Sewell-Fairman steadily grew the organization’s budget, staff size, and programmatic reach while successfully navigating significant operational headwinds. She facilitated meaningful cross-sector discussions about workforce issues and launched a Leadership Development program that connected innovators—primarily leaders of color. Sewell-Fairman’s work directly impacted low-and moderate-income individuals (over 10k unique workforce practitioners and 740 unique organizations) by ensuring access to economic opportunities. Among her legacy is recruiting a diverse and expanded Board of Directors representing extensive expertise and experience in the for-profit, nonprofit, and academic worlds.
Sewell-Fairman began her career at the New York Association of Training & Employment Professionals, a member organization based in Albany, NY. She has held senior positions at the New York City Employment & Training Coalition, Wadley-Donovan Growth Tech LLC, and National Association of Workforce Boards in Washington, DC, where she worked with the nation’s 600+ workforce boards including 15,000 business leaders and Congressional staff on workforce policies and advocacy priorities.
Sewell-Fairman holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from State University at Albany, an MBA in International Business from the University of Maryland Global Campus, a Certificate in International Business Studies from the University of Antwerp in Belgium, and a Certificate of Business Excellence, Senior Leaders Program for Nonprofit Professionals from Columbia University. She currently serves on the Human Services Council’s Priority and Strategy Council and the Workforce Development Advisory Council for the Thomas and Jeanne Elmezzi Private Foundation. Ms. Sewell-Fairman previously served on the Boards of Day One New York and New York Association of Training & Employment Professionals (NYATEP).