Meet our President "Ann"

Ann Mcpherson

Ann McPherson is President & CEO of the Elevating Grace Foundation, INC, which provides youth with the skills, training, and financial assistance they need to transition into leading successful lives as independent adults. Through her work at the foundation, Ann has seen first-hand that empowering young people can bring transformational improvement to the health and prosperity of families, communities, and societies.

​

Ann was born in Jamaica, West Indies, and grew up in Queens, New York. She lived in three different states before deciding to settle down in Georgia, where she is not only raising her 10-year-old son (Jaden) but is also a foster parent. Ann received a bachelor's degree in social work with a minor in psychology from Kean University in 2000, and a master's in public administration from Troy University in 2003. She completed eighty-five (85) percent of all required courses for a Ph.D. in Psychology from Capella University. She is currently pursuing further behavioral studies to become a Certified Behavior Analyst from North Central University.

​

Her work has led her to focus on youth empowerment as a path to meaningful change. She started working in the social service field over two decades ago as a lead aftercare supervisor, developing her love for helping young people. For more than twenty years, Ann has worked in various capacities in the social service industry. These positions include foster care case manager, mental health therapist, adjunct professor, director of case management, regional compliance manager, facility administrator, interim superintendent, assistant superintendent, and an intellectual developmental disability (IDD) contract liaison.

​

Ann has managed multi-million dollar budget contracts and procurement expenditures, and payroll. She has provided supervision, leadership, and direction to multiple departments, including Mental Health, Case Management, Medical Department, Physical Plant/Maintenance, Education and Vocational Department, Operations, and Security for a 190-bed facility. Furthermore, Ann has facilitated staff development and promoted quality improvement to achieve optimal program outcomes.

Ann has been passionate about helping young people maximize their full potential. From being a member of the Mayor's task force in high school to volunteering to tutor children in reading and math during her university years, most of her extra-curricular activities have always involved working with children and youth. While working with at-risk children, Ann began to see the disparity among youth regarding the knowledge of independent living skills. She saw that many young people are ill-equipped to transition to young adulthood. In May 2021, Ann took a leap of faith and developed the Elevating Grace Foundation, Inc company. EGF focuses on assisting young people in establishing basic independent living skills  (e.g., writing resumes, developing life skills, assessing services such as transportation, planning, budgeting, obtaining employment, further education, outlining employment strategies, interviewing techniques, parenting skills, healthcare services, and many other resources). The foundation's success is embedded in the motto "Securing the future, through youth empowerment."