Metro Roundup: Lakeshore Basis declares new CEO

The Board of Directors of the Lakeshore Foundation announced the appointment of John Kemp as President and Chief Executive Officer effective November 1st.

Kemp succeeds Jeff Underwood, who announced last year that he would be retiring this fall. Kemp is currently the President and CEO of the Viscardi Center and the Henry Viscardi School in Long Island, New York.

Kemp has a track record in the corporate and nonprofit worlds. He has decades of experience in the disability movement as a disability leader and is a co-founder of the American Association of People with Disabilities. Previous leadership positions include national executive director of the United Cerebral Palsy Associations, president and CEO of VSA Arts and VSA Arts International, and general counsel and vice president of development for the National Easter Seal Society.

Kemp is the recipient of the Henry B. Betts Award, widely recognized as America’s highest distinction for disability leadership and service, and the Dole Leadership Prize from the University of Kansas Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics, including Nelson Mandela and former US President George HW Bush and Bill Clinton.

“John becomes only the second CEO in Lakeshore’s 30-year history,” said CEO Mark McColl. “It is important to our board of directors that the new CEO can build on our strong foundations and expand our mission to enable people with physical disabilities to lead active and healthy lives. With his wealth of experience as a national leader and passion for our mission, John is an excellent fit for Lakeshore. “

As a chairman, member or partner, Kemp has served a number of leading disability and nonprofit organizations. In 2001 he became a partner in the Washington, DC law firm Powers, Pyles, Sutter & Verville where he developed an active state legislative and lobbying practice. In 2019 he spoke at the first Symposium on Disability Rights, jointly sponsored by Lakeshore and the UAB Institute for Human Rights.

Kemp is a graduate of Georgetown University and Washburn University School of Law. He and his wife Sameta (“Sam”) will be moving to Birmingham later this year.

– Submitted by Damian Veazy, Lakeshore Foundation

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