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Meet Lisa Glow of Central Arizona Shelter Services in Central Phoenix

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Glow.

When Lisa Glow chose law as her career, that choice ultimately set her on the path to helping the disenfranchised members of Arizona society. She earned her doctorate in jurisprudence from the University of Arizona in 1989 and practiced law for the next ten years.

But even as a young attorney, Lisa balanced career with helping others by volunteering her time for New Pathways for Youth, which was formerly called Phoenix Youth at Risk. Those two choices – law and volunteering – gave her the knowledge and understanding to take her skills to a larger playing field working for former Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano.

“When I was practicing law early on, I started volunteering for Phoenix Youth at Risk. I loved knowing that I could make a difference within my community,” she recalls. Her law degree, however, gave her the training and foundation to do many different jobs over her career, including working with Napolitano.

“When the opportunity came, I knew that working with Janet Naplitano would give me the best of both worlds … I could have it all using my training as an attorney, and have the opportunity to make an even bigger impact for people.”

Glow practiced law for a decade before joining Napolitano’s successful bid for attorney general. She spent seven years as a top advisor for Napolitano, following Napolitano to the governor’s office in 2003. Glow focused her efforts during the governor’s tenure from 2003 to 2009 on making life better for the disenfranchised and for those without a voice. Two notable accomplishments included: 1. Drastically and successfully reducing the backlog of child abuse cases in Arizona, and 2. Securing funding to build enough domestic violence shelter beds so that no woman or man seeking shelter would be turned away.

Following Napolitano’s move in 2009 to serve former President Barack Obama as Secretary of Homeland Security, Glow developed a consulting business that concentrated on training leaders of nonprofits on how to develop long-term financial sustainability. Glow’s background in all these arenas eventually led her to her current job as CEO of Central Arizona Services Shelter where she is continuing her lifelong efforts of improving the plight of the state’s most vulnerable residents.

“All of those decisions I made along the way led me to this job here at CASS,” she said.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Lisa began her law career in the late 1980s when the struggle for workplace equality was more pronounced than it is today. She experienced wage discrepancy and some gender bias. “Being a woman in a field dominated by men… well, it hasn’t always been smooth. While women have gained tremendous ground in law and politics, we still aren’t where we can and should be.”

She recalls attending a meeting as a young attorney. “I was dressed professionally, and I looked like a lawyer. But, one of the other lawyers at the meeting asked if I was a paralegal.

“It is changing, but we still have a way to go. I think as women, we have to have tenacity and we have to juggle more balls. Raising our children, succeeding as executives, finding our place and gaining that acceptance.”

Glow found that acceptance working in the nonprofit sector, where she sees women as more easily accepted. “The nonprofit sector has embraced women and allowed them to rise to leadership more quickly.”

She said that a woman’s experience in juggling children and career make them ideal for jobs in the nonprofit world because those same juggling skills are needed. “A nonprofit CEO wears many more hats than a corporate CEO. You have less resources. You have to do more with less. It’s a different skill set and more challenging in many ways.”

Both her children, including her 21-year-old daughter and her 18-year-old son, consider themselves feminists. “My daughter taught me that feminism today is all about inclusion of all people. So many of us are in the nonprofit sector because it’s inclusive and accepting. It can be a quicker pathway to fulfilling your potential.”

Please tell us about Central Arizona Shelter Services.
Having a background in law and public policy is what sets Lisa Glow apart from many other CEOs. Also, corporate CEOs are not generally responsible for fundraising, which is one of Lisa’s strengths. “I am an excellent fundraiser and good at turning around agencies,” something she did as a consultant working with nonprofits. “It’s a unique combination of skills.”

Her colleagues also say that part of what sets Lisa apart is her compassionate leadership. Lisa’s arrival at CASS coincided with depleted funding and an agency struggling to meet the ever-growing needs of homeless people living in the Phoenix Metro area. The staff at CASS found themselves battling to help others with shrinking resources. The company culture was in survivor mode and staff were discouraged.

Lisa came in with a different perspective and an attitude that encouraged all staff to be part of the solution, and to shift the mindset to one of abundance versus scarcity. Her passion encouraged the staff to follow her lead and look for success rather than disappointment. The bottom-line result was that CASS doubled the fundraising goal set for 2018, was donated a building in the West Valley and forged new solution-oriented community alliances. Staff members are inspired and see new possibilities to solve the homeless crisis, and, importantly, to be part of leading solutions.

Do you feel like our city is a good place for businesses like yours? If someone was just starting out, would you recommend them starting out here? If not, what can our city do to improve?
“I think Phoenix is a tremendously compassionate city and one of the best-run cities in the country,” Lisa says. “It has been for many many years. For agencies taking care of the homeless, it is a great place because of the support.”

She also sees Phoenix as a great place to start a career because of the “maverick spirit” of Arizona. “The thing about Phoenix and Arizona in general is that’s still a place where you can really rise in your career quickly. It’s part of the DNA of the West. It’s all about mavericks like (the late Sen. John) McCain, and (former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe) Arpaio – they are all mavericks. Janet (Napolitano) was a maverick. If you can tap into the maverick spirit, and you like the feeling of bringing something new and innovating, Phoenix is the place for you to come.”

When looking at ways to improve homelessness, Lisa sees affordable housing as a cornerstone in the effort. “I think that what we need to do next is build social enterprise models to help more homeless individuals find work. I believe the spirit of Phoenix as an entrepreneurial city can help us get there.” Lisa believes that affordable housing that is accessible to those earning a minimum wage or recent college graduates is also key to reducing those forced to live on the streets and seek the services of CASS and other agencies.

“To improve, we need to build more affordable housing and the state of Arizona also needs to commit to building affordable housing. To have truly diverse cities, and to attract business, the state has to have housing available for all. Many families, many minimum wage workers, simply can’t afford to live anywhere near where they work.”

“I think the city of Phoenix cares deeply, as do cities throughout the Maricopa County region. But homelessness is too big a problem for any one city or the county to solve. What we need is more collective, solution-oriented leadership. More state leaders also need to step up and help us solve this crisis.”

Pricing:

  • The state of Arizona offers a Charitable Tax Credit option for nonprofits, and CASS is one of those agencies that can benefit from donations from residents. “You can give to charities of your choice and get it all back off your taxes. We also need corporate volunteers, and corporate partners who are interested in helping us meet our daily needs of providing shelter and services to thousands of people.” From the CASS website: The State of Arizona offers a tax credit to individuals who provide support to organizations that help the needy. This allows you to take a dollar-for-dollar tax credit when you make a donation to Central Arizona Shelter Services, in addition to the foster care, public school and the private school tax credits. Taxpayers filing as “single” and “head of household” status may claim a maximum credit of $400. Taxpayers who file as “married filing joint” may claim a maximum credit of $800. For more information about the tax credit and filing instructions, please visit the Arizona Department of Revenue. Always consult with a qualified, licensed professional regarding legal or tax-related issues. To give to CASS and take your Arizona Charitable Tax Credit, please go to cassaz.org, or contact the development department at (602) 417-9800 or development@cassaz.org.

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Image Credit:
Photo Courtesy of CASS

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