Charles A. Wolfe

BA '85 (Political Science), Pi Kappa Alpha

Former President and CEO, Victory Fund

Washington, D.C.

Chuck Wolfe is a partner and co-founder of Wolfe Kinkennon, bringing 30 years experience in non-profit management, business management, leadership development, organizational change, board management, political campaigning, finance, and fundraising.

Wolfe recently completed a well-regarded 12-year term as President and CEO of the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, which he grew into an internationally influential LGBT-equality organization. He grew budgets over 500%, increased the number of LGBT elected officials five fold, recruited hundreds of board members (for three separate boards), trained thousands of LGBT public officials in the U.S. and abroad, built innovative programs that corporations eagerly funded, and served as a pivotal player in the nation’s shift to a culture that not only now accepts but relishes and celebrates LGBT citizens in public office. As a result of his work, Wolfe was twice named to the OUT Magazine’s list of 50 most “powerful” LGBT Americans.

In 1992, when Hurricane Andrew struck South Florida, at the time the most destructive hurricane in U.S. history, Florida Governor Lawton Chiles tasked Wolfe to lead the Florida Relief Center. Though only very young, he cemented a reputation as someone who gets things done. He later tackled the operations of Gov. Chiles re-election campaign, the logistics of the Governor’s inaugural, and the creation and management of the Miami Financial Emergency Oversight Board (saving Miami from bankruptcy).

Wolfe later oversaw the implementation of a groundbreaking part of Florida’s settlement with the big tobacco companies. “The Truth Campaign,” considered outside the lines at the time and too risky for traditional government efforts from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, would become a national model for public-health education and the first ever campaign to lead to a demonstrable reduction in youth tobacco use.

Today, as a cofounder and partner of Wolfe Kinkennon, Wolfe serves as a guide for leaders. He helps organizations navigate immediate business challenges, long-term strategic direction, and fulfillment of mission.

He travels extensively and feels most at home with close friends and family. He splits time among Florida, Washington, DC, and the mountains of West Virginia.

Wolfe has served as chair of the College of Arts and Sciences Board of Advisors, and was elected to the Board of Trustees in 2015. He currently serves as chair of the Committee on Trusteeship.