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Michelle Borden has more than 40 years experience in nonprofit leadership, including 23 at NewBridge Services. Ms. Borden is a force behind NewBridge’s innovative programming, designed with flexibility to meet communities’ changing needs. As CEO, she oversees day-to-day operations, quality management and regulatory compliance. Ms. Borden coordinates the nonprofit’s response to community crises, and represents the organization in local, county and statewide planning efforts. She is a Certified School Social Worker, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, a Certified Social Work Manager, and a Disaster Response Crisis Counselor.

Ms. Borden found her calling at age 12, after a hurricane devastated her New Orleans neighborhood. She earned a bachelor’s degree in cultural studies at Bates College in Maine, and a Master of Social Work at the University of Connecticut. Working for the Devereaux Foundation, Ms Borden led the creation of a residential program for girls with emotional disturbance. She then spent 11 years overseeing the psychiatric and substance abuse programs — first outpatient and then both outpatient and inpatient — at East Orange General Hospital.

She began working at NewBridge in 1997, and quickly became second-in-command. Before becoming CEO, Ms. Borden served as chief operating officer. After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Borden became a founding member of the Morris County Human Services Response Network. The effort led to New Jersey becoming one of the first states to certify disaster response crisis counselors. A decade later, Borden was providing psychological first aid in communities devastated by flooding.

She serves on the Morris County Youth Services Advisory Council; the Professional Advisory Committees for the Morris and Passaic County Mental Health and Substance Abuse Advisory Boards; the Sussex County Human Services Advisory Committee; and the Morris County Traumatic Loss Coalition.