Jonathan Peck has his long, dread-locked hair pulled back as he struts about the Tucson Urban League Campus. His assistant's pen is scrawling rapidly across a notepad, adding to a to-do list as Peck rattles off new plans: a new fence, an organic garden, an updated sand-volleyball court and an outdoor mural.
The atypical new chief executive officer sports black-framed sunglasses and a red T-shirt with black work-out pants.
Peck, 39, is the new president and CEO of the Tucson Urban League. Though he has only been in Tucson since December 2009, he is busy planning changes and improvements on how the Urban League can best serve Tucson's communities.
Peck has many ideas for Tucson neighborhoods and plans to work with them so they can reach their full potential.
"I enjoy working to try and coordinate and bring the best out of people and their work," Peck said.
The Tucson Urban League is a non-profit organization that focuses on community outreach and providing aid to those in need. The Urban League is a national movement and is one of the oldest civil rights organizations in the country, Peck said.
"We provide services and programs that empower communities," Peck said.
Some of these services include housing, weatherization or weather-proofing older homes, utilities assistance, after school services, education, advocacy work and policy work, Peck said.
Peck started working with youth and the public as a soccer coach when he was a junior in high school. He has been involved in community assistance since 1988, he said.
Peck was born in Vietnam and came to the United States when he was three years old. His adopted parents were involved in human and civil rights movements both domestic and abroad, he said. They taught him the importance of assisting those who are less fortunate.
Peck earned a bachelor's degree in liberal arts from Earlham College in Indiana and worked with the Southwest Youth Collaborative in Chicago for 16 years before coming to Tucson.
Because of his extensive background in community action, many members on the hiring committee for the CEO position found Peck to be a strong candidate, said Enrique Serna, South Tucson City Manager who was on the committee. Many well-qualified people were reviewed for the position, but Peck surpassed his competition, Serna said.
"He excelled in his interviewing process, so that attested to the breadth of his experience, measuring up to those much older, more experienced people," Serna said.
Serna explained that the Urban League has provided a number of services for residents, but they may not have been as present as they could have been over the past few years.
Maggie Bonjean, the Urban League's administrative executive assistant and chief of staff, first met Peck in 2004 in Chicago, when she worked at the youth organization.
"Jonathan is about building partnerships and leveraging assets in the community so that we can come up with creative solutions to the challenges our community faces," she said.
Peck faces challenges as CEO. Human Resources Director Eboni White has been working closely with him over the past few weeks introducing him to staff and other community members. Building new relationships in Tucson could be one of his challenges, White said.
The Urban League is expanding its arts, culture and sports programming, Peck said. They also recently established a community and family care fund to respond to local needs and worldwide relief efforts such as those in Haiti. Peck said he plans to have a permanent relief fund in place to aid families and communities in crisis.
The Urban League's Intel Computer Clubhouse, a technology and computer center that provides after-school learning focused on multi-media usage, will also be expanded. A new high school GED program may also be launched this year, Peck said.
All of these changes require large sums of money. Bonjean said Peck's main challenge will be financial. Social service funding continues to be cut, so raising money for the organization is another goal, Peck said.
Peck said one of his main focuses over the next few months will be making sure programs and services are operating smoothly.
"We're going to make sure that all of our programs are performing at or above par," he said.
In order to help fund their programs, the Urban League is also going to work on fundraising projects, Peck said.
"He will fight for this organization just like he did in Chicago," Bonjean said. "He knows how to fight for it. He won't stop."
