Maheen Kaleem, Esq. is Vice President of Operations and Programs of Grantmakers for Girls of Color, overseeing development and management of G4GC’s programs, grants, and operations.

Maheen has dedicated her life to creating a world where girls of color are safe and free. She has almost twenty years of experience supporting youth and families impacted by interpersonal and state violence, and making way for those traditionally marginalized from formal sites of power to lead efforts to advance racial and gender justice. In the various roles she has held, she has always grounded her work in the wisdom of women and girls of color who have survived the carceral system, sexual exploitation, and abuse. Most recently, Maheen served as Program Officer at the NoVo Foundation, where she managed the foundation’s work to end commercial sexual exploitation and led the development of The Life Story Grants, a $10 million three-year commitment to support projects that close on-ramps into the sex trade and open exit ramps for survivors.

Maheen is committed to providing those most impacted by systems of oppression with the respect and resources to enact change. She was an Equal Justice Works Fellows, a Stoneleigh Emerging Leader Fellow, and is a graduate of the National Juvenile Justice Network Youth Justice Leadership Institute. She holds bachelors and law degrees from Georgetown University In her free time, Maheen enjoys her loved ones, hip hop, poetry, and her beloved Golden State Warriors. She is based in what was once Chocolate City, also known as Washington, D.C.