Since assuming the role of Executive Director at Sanctuary for Families in 2014, Judge Kluger has secured substantial new sources of private and public funding, growing the agency budget from approximately $15 million to a budget of $27 million today. Under her leadership, Sanctuary’s Legal Center launched new programs to address the unique needs of college sexual assault survivors, incarcerated gender violence survivors, and Orthodox Jewish survivors. Sanctuary has also expanded its innovative Economic Empowerment Program, launched the first worker coop initiative for current and former clients, realigned the organization’s clinical practice to a family-focused, evidence-based therapeutic model to help rebuild parent-child relationships, and shifted all services to virtual platforms to increase client accessibility.
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Prior to joining Sanctuary, Judge Kluger served for 25 years as a judge in New York State, most recently as Chief of Policy and Planning for the court system, a position through which she oversaw New York State’s 300 problem-solving courts. Judge Kluger currently serves on the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary, the Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence (ENDGBV) Advisory Council, and the advisory board of New York Nonprofit Media. She is also a member of the Chief Judge’s Justice Task Force and the Independent Commission on NYC Criminal Justice and Incarceration Reform. Judge Kluger has received many honors and awards, including the New York State Bar Association’s 2013 Award for Excellence in Public Service, the New York Women’s Bar Association’s 2019 President’s Special Award, and the Fund for Modern Courts’ 2020 Career Public Service Award.
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“I am inspired and energized by our committed, talented, and hardworking staff. I consider myself fortunate to lead this outstanding organization.”
Executive Director, Sanctuary for Families