Gaithersburg Resident Selected as New Interfaith Works CEO

Interfaith Works’ Board of Directors has named Shane Rock as the organization’s new Chief Executive Officer. He is a resident of Gaithersburg.

Interfaith Works is a leading social service agency in Montgomery County, providing an array of services to help thousands of vulnerable individuals and families move from crisis to stability.

Rock comes to Interfaith Works following an extensive career in the social service arena.  Most recently, he has been director of operations for senior services for the Jewish Social Services Agency in Rockville, one of Interfaith Works’ community partners. His career spans more than 20 years working in the nonprofit, social service and advocacy world. Rock has a successful track record of building community relationships, advocating on behalf of the vulnerable at the state and federal levels, and expanding funding capacity of the organizations where he has played a leadership role.

"Shane is a passionate, experienced advocate for those in need,” said Farley T. Price, Interfaith Works board chair. “His extensive leadership and professional experience focusing on helping the vulnerable make him ideally suited to carry out the mission of Interfaith Works.”

After graduating from law school, Rock became executive director for Good Neighbor Mission, a homeless shelter in rural Tennessee helping people living in extreme poverty. In the years that followed, Rock’s career grew to encompass a range of social justice concerns while always remaining focused on helping people who lack economic opportunity.

Rock said his goal is for Interfaith Works and its programs to serve as a national model for effectively changing the lives of those confronting poverty and homelessness. Interfaith Works’ long-time leadership and reputation in successfully serving the vulnerable in Montgomery County attracted him to the organization, Rock noted.

The direction of his career was shaped significantly by his early experience trying to help people overcome desperate situations, sometimes in emergency conditions. “Running the shelter was transformative,” said Rock. “We made a visible difference for people in crisis, transforming their lives and helping them work towards becoming self-supporting over the long term.”

In addition to his experience in Tennessee, Rock served as program director for The Sharehouse in Seattle, a multi-faith organization that distributes donated essential items to families and individuals who are re-establishing a household after a period of homelessness, helping them achieve security and self-sufficiency. Rock also served as executive director of the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance, the lead organization focused on affordable housing advocacy in Washington State.  In recognition of his leadership of the Alliance, Rock was awarded the 2005 Fannie Mae Foundation Fellowship for study at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

Rock has a bachelor of arts degree in government and philosophy from Oberlin College and a J.D. from Vanderbilt University Law School.

He will join Interfaith Works on July 21.

Interfaith Works, based in Rockville, Md., is one of Montgomery County’s leading social service organizations, with more than 42 years of service helping those in need.  Interfaith Works helps thousands of our vulnerable neighbors move from crisis to stability through prevention, support and empowerment.