Dear Friends,
We are thrilled to announce True Colors United’s next Chief Executive Officer: Dylan Waguespack!
We are excited to see the great things Dylan will do leading the organization as he assumes the role today. Dylan has been on the True Colors United team for the last three years, most recently serving as Chief Policy Officer. Over that time, we have witnessed his strategic, empathetic, and inspiring leadership as he helped advance our mission to implement innovative solutions to youth homelessness.
Those same qualities are needed to navigate the challenging times the world finds itself in. Our collective work to center equity and the needs of LGBTQ+ and BIPOC youth are more crucial than ever. We’re grateful and confident that Dylan will build on the collaborative advancements True Colors United has made over the last 15 years to ensure that every young person has a safe, stable place to call home and are able to be their true selves.
Dylan, who identifies as transgender and nonbinary and uses he/him and they/them pronouns, grew up in Louisiana and brings his lived experience of homelessness as a young person to the role. He will become the only transgender leader of a national homelessness and housing justice organization. Dylan’s demonstrated accomplishments at True Colors United and in his work prior to joining the organization made him the clear choice to take the helm.
Dylan was selected by the Board of Directors after a national search process which was facilitated by Koya Partners, an executive search firm. A broad candidate pool was narrowed in stages by a diverse search committee.
Since joining True Colors United in 2019, Dylan has been overseeing our public policy agenda at all levels of government and serving as our primary spokesperson. Under his leadership, True Colors United helped defeat the Trump Administration’s proposed 2020 rule that would have gutted protections for transgender and gender-nonconforming people experiencing homelessness through a national campaign that secured a record-breaking 66,000+ public comments in opposition. Dylan also co-founded House of Tulip, a Community Land Trust, in New Orleans to create permanent housing solutions for transgender and gender-nonconforming people experiencing homelessness in responses to the economic devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Before he joined True Colors United, Dylan coordinated the lobbying strategy on the first ever transgender-specific legislation to pass the U.S. House of Representatives in 2019 as a political communications and advocacy consultant. Dylan began his career at Louisiana Progress, a progressive movement-building partnership, where he drafted and lobbied for bills expanding opportunities for children, youth, and families impacted by homelessness.
We can’t wait to see Dylan’s impact at True Colors United and as a national leader in the housing justice movement. We’ll leave you with words from Dylan as he prepares to to take the reigns:
“I’m thrilled to have been chosen as the new CEO at True Colors United and continue my work with this brilliant team as we enter our exciting new chapter. Young people are powerful and change the world every day. I’m excited to continue to deepen our investment in youth action, because only through the leadership of people with lived experience of homelessness will we achieve housing justice together.
I look forward to adding to the strong foundation that’s been laid over the past fifteen years by our outgoing CEO and co-founder Gregory Lewis. As a trans person from the deep south with lived experience of homelessness, I know what it’s like to navigate systems that are built to work against you. In my new role, I will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with young people in breaking down systemic barriers, fighting for liberation, and building a future where all of us have the freedom of self-expression and self-determination.”
In unity,
Cyndi Lauper, Lisa Barbaris, and Gregory Lewis
Co-Founders of True Colors United