Liz McCartney cofounded
SBP (formerly the St. Bernard Project) in March 2006 to rebuild homes destroyed by
Hurricane Katrina in the
St. Bernard Parish of
Louisiana, southeast of
New Orleans
New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
. She is the 2008 CNN
Hero of the Year and was nominated fo
CNN Superheroof the Decade.
Biography
A native of
Washington, DC, McCartney attended
Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School. She graduated from
Boston College in 1994 and received a master's degree in curriculum and instruction from the
George Washington University. McCartney served in the
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an Independent agency of the U.S. government, independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to communities in partner countries around the world. It was established in Marc ...
in
Lesotho
Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
. She has also taught
ESL and middle school. Before startin
SBP McCartney was the Executive Director of a community-based nonprofit organization in Washington, DC which provided technology-based after school and summer programs for young people attending DC public schools. McCartney and Zack Rosenburg volunteered in
St. Bernard Parish in March 2006 after the storm. They then quit their jobs in Washington, returned to
Louisiana in June 2006, and the following August they cofounded the
St. Bernard Project. As of July 2012, over 45,000 volunteers have rebuilt more than 440 hurricane-damaged homes in St. Bernard Parish and New Orleans with the St. Bernard Project.
Awards
*In 2007, Liz McCartney and Zack Rosenburg made Gambit's "40 under 40" list of successful young New Orleanians.
*Liz and Zack received the
Manhattan Institute for Policy Research Social Entrepreneurship Award in 2008.
*On May 3, 2008, Senator
Mary Landrieu presented Liz and Zack with the Heroes of the Storm Award.
*On January 5, 2009 Liz and Zack were named
Gambit Weekly's New Orleanians of the Year 2008.
*Liz McCartney was voted the 2008
CNN Hero of the Year (
CNN Heroes) on November 27, 2008.
*Liz McCartney was named the "2010 Woman of Excellence for Community Service" by
Wiley College
According to CNN's website:
* "Liz McCartney is dedicated to helping Hurricane Katrina survivors in St. Bernard Parish, a community just outside New Orleans. Her nonprofit St. Bernard Project has rebuilt the homes of more than 120 families."
See also
*
CNN Heroes
References
External links
CNN Heroes PageSt. Bernard Project PageThanks From Liz-CNN Hero of the Year
{{DEFAULTSORT:McCartney, Liz
Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School alumni
Hurricane Katrina disaster relief
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Boston College alumni
George Washington University Graduate School of Education and Human Development alumni
Philanthropists from Washington, D.C.