Nisha Patel

Nisha Patel is a Program Officer for Special Initiatives in the U.S. Program at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Prior to joining the Gates Foundation in January 2008, she served as Director of Programs at Washington Area Women's Foundation. Her responsibilities there included management and implementation of the Stepping Stones initiative, a multi-year investment strategy focused on building economic security for single mothers and their families in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. Previously, Nisha was a Senior Policy Analyst at the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), where her work over five years included advocacy, analysis, and research on welfare and workforce development policies impacting low-income families. Before joining CLASP, Nisha worked at the National Legal Aid and Defender Association as Program Coordinator for the Project for the Future of Equal Justice, a national initiative focused on increasing access to civil legal aid services for low-income families. She also previously served as an Adjunct Professor at the George Washington University. Nisha serves on the Board of Directors of Bread for the City, a nonprofit organization that provides comprehensive services to vulnerable residents of Washington, D.C. Nisha holds a bachelor's degree from Vanderbilt University and a Master of Social Work degree from the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis.