CHICAGO, IL – Cooper Coleman LLC has recruited Crystal Costello as Chief of People and Culture at Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund, a nonprofit organization committed to the civil rights of LGBTQ+ individuals and everyone living with HIV. Crystal most recently held the position of VP of Human Resources and Talent Management at the AIDS Foundation Chicago and previously led human resources for the University of Chicago Law School and the Mandel Legal Aid Clinic.
Having spent over a decade in nonprofit human resources leadership, Crystal will now serve as part of the executive leadership team at Lambda Legal. As Chief of People and Culture, they will lead the human resources team responsible for talent acquisition, onboarding, employee relations, performance management, training and development, compensation, and employee benefits while ensuring alignment with the organization’s strategic priorities and programmatic vision.
John Roane, Jr., Chief Operating Officer at Lambda Legal, expressed his enthusiasm for the new hire. "We are thrilled to welcome Crystal to the Lambda Legal team. Their expertise in human resources management and passion for social justice align perfectly with our values and mission. We look forward to their contributions in ensuring that our workplace culture fosters inclusion, diversity, and excellence."
"I am honored to join Lambda Legal and its team of dedicated professionals who have long been at the forefront of advancing LGBTQ rights," said Crystal Costello. "Lambda Legal's mission and importance in the LGBTQ space have never been more vital, and I look forward to working with the organization to create a supportive and inclusive work environment that will enable us to continue to deliver on our mission."
The nationwide search was led by Cooper Coleman executive search consultant, Kathy Kraushar. “Crystal stood out as a dynamic and passionate leader who brings a unique blend of human resources expertise, nonprofit experience, and a commitment to social justice,” said Ms. Kraushar. “We are thrilled to have helped bring them to Lambda Legal, where they will play an instrumental part in shaping the organization's future.”
Crystal holds an MBA with concentrations in human resources management and training and development from Roosevelt University and is PHR and SHRM-CP certified. Crystal is also a certified mediator and career coach, and has worked as a certified crisis responder on-call and in emergency rooms with organizations such as UChicago, YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago, and Resilience.
Crystal’s appointment as Chief of People and Culture is effective immediately.
About Cooper Coleman LLC
Cooper Coleman LLC is a full-service retained executive search and consulting firm partnering exclusively with nonprofit organizations, foundations, and research and academic institutions to drive meaningful growth. Its team moves organizations forward by placing the right leaders in the right roles at the right time and helps to strengthen their management and fundraising capacity to amplify their mission and impact.
Cooper Coleman's diverse client portfolio spans a wide range of social impact areas, reflecting its commitment to serving the entire spectrum of the social impact sector. Its clients are focused on a variety of causes, such as civil rights, health equity, the performing arts, adoption and foster care, LGBTQ+ advocacy, tech for good, and more.
Founder and CEO Johnny Cooper has more than 16 years of leadership experience throughout the social sector. He established Cooper Coleman to solve a gap in service delivery to the sector, specifically how search firms represent nonprofit clients and the insufficient attention paid to the candidate experience throughout a search—particularly for those candidates not chosen for a role. Cooper partnered with his father-in-law, William B. Coleman, Jr., to establish Cooper Coleman as a firm that prioritizes making the essential services of executive search accessible to organizations across the social sector, knowing the transformational impact having the right leaders in the right roles can have on an organization and its mission. Bill Coleman has more than 25 years’ experience in retained executive search, including leading his own firm, Coleman Search Consulting LLC, for more than ten years until its sale in 2018.
Kathy Kraushar is a highly experienced business development professional, who joined Cooper Coleman after spending more than 17 years leading market strategy growth at MediSync Health Solutions. In addition to her experience in the for-profit sector, Kathy has over 14 years of nonprofit leadership experience, having built and led physician recruitment, fund development, and program development at the Deaconess Hospital and Deaconess Foundation. She is passionate about serving as a trusted partner with social impact and healthcare organizations to identify, assess, and hire exceptional leaders whose vision, values, and expertise will drive systemic change throughout their communities. Kathy holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing from Miami University.
For more information on Cooper Coleman LLC, visit their website at www.coopercoleman.com and find them on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/coopercoleman.
About Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund:
Lambda Legal is a national organization committed to achieving full recognition of the civil rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) people and everyone living with HIV through impact litigation, education, and public policy work. Founded in 1973, Lambda Legal has been involved in some of the most important legal battles in the movement for LGBTQ+ equality.
Since its founding, Lambda Legal has used impact litigation and other advocacy tools to decriminalize same-sex relationships; challenge discrimination against LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV in the workplace, in the home, in schools, in health care, and in the military; and protect LGBTQ+ families, including by winning and defending marriage equality. Clients are not charged for legal representation or advocacy, and Lambda Legal receives no government funding. Headquartered in New York City, Lambda Legal has regional offices in Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, and Washington, D.C.
For more information on the Lambda Legal, visit their website at www.lambdalegal.org.