Mark Swann

Mark Swann has been the Executive Director of Preble Street since 1991 and has overseen significant growth and expansion of the agency and its mission in that time: from a small soup kitchen with two employees in the basement of an old church to a multi-site, comprehensive social service agency for homeless and low-income individuals and families. Besides the original Resource Center, Preble Street now operates the Lighthouse Shelter, the Teen Center, Logan Place, Unity Village and Florence House with 170 employees and 5000 volunteers. In the fall of 2009, Preble Street created the Maine Hunger Initiative, combining direct service, community organizing and advocacy in an effort to end hunger in Maine. Preble Street has won several awards and national recognition for its dual efforts of providing basic, street-level services while also advocating for and building sustainable solutions to end homelessness and hunger.

Previous to his work in Maine, Mark was the Director of Social Services at the International Institute of Boston, a refugee resettlement agency. Mark has a BA from Bowdoin College and a Master’s of Science in Public Affairs from UMASS Boston. He lives in Portland, Maine with his wife and three children, is a volunteer basketball coach with the Portland Recreation Department and has served on the several local Boards, including Spring Harbor Hospital, York-Cumberland Housing, The Board Network, the Immigration and Legal Advocacy Project, and the Center for Prevention of Hate Violence.