The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention non-profit organization, has new leadership following a two-year search for a permanent CEO.
Jaymes Black, the former president and CEO of Family Equality, will take over at The Trevor Project on July 15, becoming the organization’s first Black and first non-binary CEO.
In a press release, The Trevor Project hailed Black as an experienced executive with more than two decades of experience managing high-performing teams. The Trevor Project’s former CEO, Amit Paley, was removed in the fall of 2022 and was replaced by interim CEO Peggy Rajski, a co-founder of The Trevor Project and a longtime board member, according to The Advocate.
“I am elated and deeply honored to step into the role of CEO at The Trevor Project for so many reasons — especially since this is an organization I desperately needed myself as a queer young person growing up in South Texas,” Black said in a written statement. “Right now, far too many queer and transgender young people are struggling with thoughts of suicide and other mental health challenges — not because of who they are, but because of how they are mistreated and stigmatized by other people. I know what that feels like, first hand.”
In a separate press release, Family Equality announced Black’s departure and said longtime board member Alexis Kantor will serve as interim president and CEO. Cooper Coleman, an executive search firm, was hired to search for a permanent CEO for Family Equality.
Black is arriving following some controversies dating back to last year at The Trevor Project, which was criticized over layoffs and accusations of “anti-worker behavor,” including allegations of threats and efforts to silence workers, according to a July 2023 press release distributed by the Communications Workers of America.
“I also know this is an enormously difficult moment for both Trevor and the young people we serve,” Black said. “Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and the dangerous, demeaning rhetoric surrounding it has reached a record high in this country, and LGBTQ+ young people are constantly being exposed to messages that attempt to invalidate their very identities. As CEO, it is my job to reinforce that LGBTQ+ young people have so many more people who love and support them exactly as they are, than those who wish them harm. This work won’t be easy, but I am ready to roll my sleeves up to help create a world in which all LGBTQ+ young people feel safe, accepted, and free to thrive as their truest selves.”
Julian Moore, who chairs The Trevor Project’s board of directors, said the search for a new CEO was a rigorous one, but Black “established themself as a sort of ‘unicorn’ candidate” thanks to a history of success in finance, technology, business, and, non-profit areas. Black also previously worked at Charles Schwab, Sabre Corporation, and Northrop Grumman.
“Right now, far too many queer and transgender young people are struggling with thoughts of suicide and other mental health challenges — not because of who they are, but because of how they are mistreated and stigmatized by other people,” Black said. “I know what that feels like first hand. I also know this is an enormously difficult moment for both Trevor and the young people we serve. Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and the dangerous, demeaning rhetoric surrounding it has reached a record high in this country, and LGBTQ+ young people are constantly being exposed to messages that attempt to invalidate their very identities. As CEO, it is my job to reinforce that LGBTQ+ young people have so many more people who love and support them exactly as they are, than those who wish them harm. This work won’t be easy, but I am ready to roll my sleeves up to help create a world in which all LGBTQ+ young people feel safe, accepted, and free to thrive as their truest selves.”
Leaders of other LGBTQ organizations praised Black’s new role, including Human Rights Campaign president Kelley Robinson and Equality Florida co-founder and CEO Nadine Smith.
Rajski, the former interim CEO, will initially serve as a special advisor to the CEO before returning to the board, according to the Trevor Project.
“We are overjoyed to welcome Jaymes to Trevor, and they are well-positioned to lead the organization into its next chapter,” Rajski said. “For more than 26 years, The Trevor Project has been providing high-quality, life-saving crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to our beloved LGBTQ+ young people. When I founded the organization back in 1998, I never imagined it would grow to such heights. I know that Jaymes — and their decorated background — will usher the organization through its next phase, continuing our critical work supporting LGBTQ+ young people for generations to come.”
Founded in 1994 by Rajski and Randy Stone, The Trevor Project was named after a character in the one-man show “Word of Mouth,” which led to the show’s adaption as an Academy Award-winning film. The founders were subsequently motivated to create the Trevor Lifeline, a crisis intervention and suicide prevention lifeline for LGBTQ youth, paving the way for the organization’s wider growth.
Today, individuals can connect to The Trevor Project’s crisis counselors 24/7, 365 via text, chat, or phone — and it’s completely free and confidential. Learn more at thetrevorproject.org/get-help.
