City Colleges Welcomes New Members to the Board of Trustees

City Colleges welcomes new members to its Board of Trustees – Dr. Kafi Moragne-Patterson and Princella “Jaribu” Lee.

The newest Trustees join City Colleges’ distinguished Board, including Chair Katya Nuques, Vice Chair Reverend Dr. Marshall E. Hatch Senior, Trustee Elizabeth Swanson,

Trustee Darlene Hightower, Trustee Oscar Sanchez, and our incoming student trustee, Widediji Deguenon from Kennedy-King College.

“I look forward to working with each of the new trustees and sharing more about the impact our outstanding students, faculty and staff are making on our city,” said Chancellor Juan Salgado.

Read the new Trustees’ biographies below:

Princella “Jaribu” Lee

Princella “Jaribu” Lee, LMSW is a lifelong Chicagoan, licensed social worker, and nonprofit leader committed to building pathways of opportunity for underserved communities.

A proud product of the Chatham community, she was raised by two devoted parents, including a Chicago Public Schools teacher who instilled in her a passion for education, service and justice.

After beginning her academic journey at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Jaribu discovered the transformative power of City Colleges—enrolling at Harold Washington, Kennedy-King, and Olive-Harvey during critical points in her life. These institutions offered her the flexibility, support, and momentum to pursue her master’s degree at Chicago State University, where she graduated magna cum laude.

As Deputy Director at KOCO and a mentor with SCORE Chicago, Jaribu has spent over two decades helping youth, families, and entrepreneurs build lives they love.

Now, as one of the newest Trustees on the Board of City Colleges of Chicago, she seeks to expand equity, enrollment, and economic opportunity for all.

Dr. Kafi Moragne-Patterson

Dr. Moragne-Patterson serves as the Executive Director of the IMPACT Leadership Development Program and Senior Vice President of Leadership Programming and Philanthropy at the Chicago Urban League (CUL). In this role, she is responsible for setting the vision for all leadership programs at CUL.

Prior to her role at CUL, Dr. Moragne-Patterson was the Senior Program Director of the University of Chicago’s Inclusive Economy Lab, where she led a portfolio of work dedicated to understanding the impact of education initiatives across the city. She also continues to serve as a lecturer across the university.

Previously, Dr. Moragne-Patterson led the University of Chicago’s Community Service Center and served as the Vice President of Program Quality, Innovation, and Evaluation at Chicago Scholars. At Chicago Scholars, she directed research and strategy for college access and success programming that impacted thousands of talented, first-generation and/or low-income students attending high schools across the City of Chicago.

Dr. Moragne-Patterson is a proud alum of Kenwood Academy, received a BA in cultural anthropology and Africana studies from Vassar College, a MSW from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a PhD from the University of Chicago’s Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice.