By Judy Clabes
NKyTribune editor
Wanda Winkler has more than 30 years experience in nonprofit leadership and has been with Brighton Center since 1993. She became president and CEO of Brighton Center and Brighton Properties in 2021, embracing the challenges of the post-COVID world with her characteristic optimism and can-do spirit.
“Wonda exemplifies servant leadership built upon deep integrity and compassion and is willing to invest the time and energy to make it happen,” said Melissa Hall Sommer, Senior Vice President at Brighton Center.
Indeed. As the saying goes, if you need something done, find a busy woman to do it. No question she’s busy, and no question she can do it. Her imprint is all over her community and not just through the significant body of work that Brighton Center itself does for the betterment of the community.
“For more than three decades, Wonda has played a pivotal role in the Northern Kentucky community,” Brent Cooper, NKY Chamber president, once said. “She has played a critical leadership role for a variety of community organizations and regional efforts.”
Wonda is homegrown, having attended St. Henry District High School, receiving her bachelor’s degree from Thomas More University and earning her MBA from Northern Kentucky University. In 1993 — some 31 years ago — she joined the Brighton Center staff as a case manager in an employment program, and she quickly rose through the ranks. After implementing a model employment training program, she became the agency’s first Employment Training Network director in 1995. In 1999, she was promoted to Associate Operating Officer and in 2011 she was named Executive Vice President — each time with considerably broadening responsibilities.
Along the way, she never lost sight of her core purpose — to create opportunities for individuals and families to achieve self-sufficiency. And that path always leads to a job paying a livable wage, affordable housing, affordable child care, financial management skills, and the ability to pursue educational opportunities.
She truly embraces the inherent worth and dignity of every human being.
Wonda is currently President & CEO of Brighton Center, Inc., a private nonprofit community-based agency that believes deeply in the potential of people and provides a uniquely comprehensive range of programs and services to achieve its mission of self-sufficiency including workforce development services such as education, employment, and training programs; family and work supports; financial and homeownership services; substance abuse recovery services for women; early childhood education; and neighborhood-based programs.
She also serves as President & CEO of Brighton Properties, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Brighton Center, a developer of quality housing that is income-aligned and provides property and facilities management. Brighton Properties currently has 308 housing units in Northern Kentucky.
Winkler’s impact on Brighton is palpable, as she has cultivated a workplace culture that Brighton employees are quick to site. But she has also developed, cultivated, and stewarded relationships with the business community. She led a project to have the agency’s first database to capture customer data, and later provided oversight for a robust agency-wide database to more systematically identify who the agency is serving, how, where, and when. While the infrastructure for capturing impact was being developed and strengthened, the scope and complexity of the work continued to grow. This is where Wonda would aggressively pursue opportunities while looking for ways to leverage the work and lessen some of the administrative burden.
Wonda leads with compassion, grace, and tenacity, her colleagues say, and under her leadership, Brighton remains committed to integrated services that meet the needs of individuals and families. Strong individuals make strong families make strong communities. The agency’s numerous awards for workplace quality and ethics under her leadership speaks volumes. Nearly 1 in 5 employees have been with the organization for 10 or more years, and it increases to 2 of 3 among the Leadership Team. Such deep institutional knowledge is a terrific advantage.
Her active involvement in the community also speaks volumes: Growing Regional Outcomes through Workforce (GROW) NKY steering committee, the NKY Partners for Health, United Way Public Policy Cabinet; Northern Kentucky University Graduate Education Advisory Board and School of Social Work Community Advisory Board; Northern Kentucky Nonprofits for Social Justice Coalition; Newport Business Association Board of Directors; and Campbell Leadership Action Group. She served for 12 years on the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors (nine as a member of the Executive Committee) and is a past chair of the Chamber’s Women’s Initiative Steering Committee; she rejoined the Board in September 2022.
Wonda is no stranger to awards and honors. She was the first recipient of the Women’s Initiative Spirit of Achievement Award in 2014 and was an Outstanding Woman of Northern Kentucky in 2016. In July 2022, she was recognized by NKY Young Professionals at the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce with the NKYP Legend Award, and she received the Northern Kentucky University Haile College of Business Humanitarian of the Year Award in September 2022.
Add to this list, a 2024 NKyTribune NewsMaker of the year.
(Editor’s note: thanks to Brighton Center’s Lauren Copeland for contributing to this story.)
Tomorrow: NewsMaker David Drees