Phone: 612-673-2312
Ann.DeGroot@ci.minneapolis.mn.us
DeGroot became the Executive Director of the Minneapolis Youth Coordinating Board in October 2008. She comes into her current position after serving 21 years as the founding Executive Director of OutFront Minnesota. In her role there she was instrumental in the passage of the 1993 Amendment to the Minnesota Human Rights Act which added legal protection for people regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity.
In addition, she worked successfully with the Minnesota business community to add domestic partner benefits for couples in same gender relationships and was intimately involved in defeating efforts to pass a constitutional amendment which would ban the legal recognition of same gender relationships.
DeGroot was a founding member of the Minnesota Alliance for Progressive Action and CenterLink: The Community of LGBT Centers. She is a former board member of the Headwaters Foundation for Justice and the Greater Minneapolis Girl Scout Council. She has presented at numerous conferences on topics as diverse as board development, fundraising, the role of the Executive Director, tax issues for non-profit organizations, how to set up a fiscal sponsorship program, class and age issues in community organizing and electoral strategies for non-profit organizations.
DeGroot has been honored with the Brian Coyle Leadership Award, the Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus Legacy Award, Rainbow Families Community Hero Award, and the Minnesota Women’s Consortium Community Leadership Award.