Dix Park Conservancy today announced that Janet Cowell has been named as President and Chief Executive Officer. Ms. Cowell succeeds Sean Malone and officially begins in her new role on January 18.

Ms. Cowell currently serves on the Dix Park Conservancy Board and has been engaged with the Park since its inception. She has thirty years of experience in both public and private sector roles, including state treasurer, chief executive officer, corporate director, state senator, and city councilor. Her broad and diverse career experience spans finance, education, and healthcare in the United States and abroad. She brings a passion for nature, history, and design to the role.

“Janet can hit the ground running,” said Jim Goodmon, Dix Park Conservancy Board Chair. “As we enter a new phase in the creation of Dix Park, Janet is the perfect person to keep all the different parts moving.”

“I am excited to lead the Conservancy because everyone should have the opportunity to discover what I have -- the joy, hope, and possibility offered by Dorothea Dix Park’s magical landscape and rich historical legacy,” said Janet Cowell. “It is a place of healing and transformation for both the individual and the broader community.”

Since its creation, Dix Park Conservancy has funded the park’s master plan development and is currently funding the work happening now, which includes a grand plaza and adventure play destination on the eastern edge of the park along Lake Wheeler Road, rehabilitation of the 1956 Greg Poole, Jr. All Faiths Chapel as a community gathering place, and re-wilding Rocky Branch, a waterway which flows along Western Boulevard. The Conservancy also continues to collaborate with the City of Raleigh to create diverse and engaging park activities, programs and events.

Reach Janet at: Janet.Cowell@dixparkconservancy.org