January 16, 2010 — LIFT, an anti-poverty agency that links volunteers one-on-one with clients to help them find jobs and housing, recently named Maicharia Weir Lytle as regional executive director for its Boston area offices.

Weir Lytle will oversee the operations and growth of the two LIFTlocal sites in Cambridge and Somerville and will lead LIFT’s external relations with local community, university, and investment partners.

Weir Lytle joins LIFT with more than 12 years of management, fundraising, and marketing experience within human services, health care, and education sectors. She most recently served as vice president of development at the Whittier Street Health Center in Roxbury, where she oversaw the strategic management of funds development, marketing, and branding to increase health and social services to a diverse population of Boston residents.

She also previously served as executive director for The Organization for New Equality in Dorchester, where she developed programs focused on eliminating poverty through financial literacy, asset development, and community outreach.

She received her master in business administration degree from Simmons College School of Management and bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Connecticut.

“I am excited to be joining the LIFT team and working for an organization that shares the same passion for empowering individuals and families to become self-sufficient. I look forward to growing LIFT’s presence here in the Boston community,” Weir Lytle said.

LIFT (formerly National Student Partnerships) is a growing movement to combat poverty and expand opportunity for all people in the United States. LIFT currently runs centers staffed by trained volunteers in Boston, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC, to serve low-income individuals and families. LIFT clients and volunteers work to find jobs, secure safe and stable housing, make ends meet through public benefits and tax credits, and obtain quality referrals for services like childcare and healthcare.