CAMP Rehoboth Names Dr. Robin Brennan as New Executive Director

Image courtesy CAMP Rehoboth

CAMP Rehoboth will have a new Executive Director later this month. Dr. Robin Brennan will take the helm on March 23. Dr. Brennan has been a visitor to Rehoboth Beach since the late 1990’s and will be moving to the beach as a full-time resident this summer with her wife and teenage daughter. In a press release, Dr. Brennan says that she was drawn to CAMP Rehoboth because of it’s “Unwavering mission, deep routes in the community and the meaningful role it plays in bringing people together.”

Dr. Brennan takes over for Kim Leisey who retired at the end of January.  

Additional information from CAMP Rehoboth:

Robin’s leadership has been anchored in large, complex health systems and institutions. At Nemours Children’s Health in Wilmington, Delaware, she held senior roles spanning evaluation, population health, and DEI education. Most recently, Robin served as Vice President and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at Redeemer Health. Robin is an experienced fundraiser across diverse revenue streams, translating mission into compelling narratives that inspire donors, deepen trust, and sustain long-term investment. She and her wife will be moving to the Rehoboth Beach area full time this summer, in time for their teenage daughter to begin high school at Cape Henlopen High.

“After conducting a comprehensive national search, the Board of Directors selected Robin because of her depth of leadership experience, her fundraising acumen and her overall joyful, focused approach,” said Leslie Ledogar, President of the LGBTQ+ community center’s Board of Directors and Chair of the Executive Director Search Committee.  “The fact that core to her leadership is her belief that community well-being is inseparable from access to health, culture, education and the arts – an approach that mirrors CAMP Rehoboth’s holistic mission – makes Robin the exact next person to lead CAMP Rehoboth today and into the future,” added Ledogar.

This Executive Director search was conducted by Johnny Cooper of Cooper Coleman LLC, with whom CAMP Rehoboth partnered on its last Executive Director search. Cooper Coleman is an LGBT-owned, full-service, executive recruiting, fundraising, and social impact consulting firm that partners exclusively with nonprofit organizations, social enterprises, foundations, and research and academic institutions to drive meaningful growth.

“I am deeply honored to serve as CAMP Rehoboth’s Executive Director as we enter an exciting new chapter,” said Robin Brennan. “I was drawn to CAMP Rehoboth because of its unwavering mission, deep roots in the community, and the meaningful role it plays in bringing people together. I look forward to meeting members of the community, listening to their stories, and building meaningful relationships with the many people who make CAMP Rehoboth such a vital community anchor.”

Brennan added that she will build on CAMP Rehoboth’s strong foundation while working collaboratively with the Board, staff, volunteers, and community partners to expand its impact and ensure it continues to be a welcoming and affirming space for the LGBTQ+ community—where everyone feels safe, seen, valued, and connected.

Dr. Brennan will lead CAMP Rehoboth as the organization continues to fulfill its mission to create a more positive environment inclusive of all sexual orientations and gender identities in Rehoboth Beach, greater Sussex County, and throughout the state of Delaware. Hiring Dr. Brennan is the latest milestone in CAMP Rehoboth’s strategic plan implementation process.  “Already well along into implementing CAMP Rehoboth’s 2023-2028 strategic plan, we look forward to having Robin play a pivotal and creative role in the completion and execution of that plan,” said Ledogar.

Robin succeeds former Executive Director Dr. Kim Leisey, whose forty years of experience  in higher education administration included the University of Maryland, Butler University and UMBC, from which she retired as Senior Associate Vice President of Student Affairs. “Kim was instrumental in propelling CAMP Rehoboth on our upward trajectory,” said Board President Leslie Ledogar. “Thanks to Kim’s steady leadership, her commitment to our mission, and the fact that she truly is a ‘champion for all things that help humans to thrive during their lifespan,’” Ledogar continued, “she left CAMP Rehoboth well positioned to emerge from a time of uncertainty to a time of strength, with the capacity we need to serve our community for decades to come.”  

When responding to Dr. Brennan’s comment that she believes she has “big shoes to fill,” Dr. Leisey shared that “healthy and storied organizations, like CAMP Rehoboth, welcome the shoes of new leadership to facilitate the next phase of growth, continue service to the entire community, and ensure financial responsibility.  I look forward to supporting Robin in her new role.”