Nicole Wood

Acting Director, DHS Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships

Jean-Pierre Brutus is a senior counsel in the Economic Justice Program at the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice.

Nicole Wood is currently acting as the Director of U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships (DHS Center). In her regular capacity, Nicole serves as the Deputy Director for the DHS Center, a center of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. In this role, she is a liaison and convener on DHS-related issues impacting faith-based and community-based organizations. She facilitates communication on protecting the safety and security of places of worship and is a communication outreach strategist for meeting the needs of survivors of natural and human-caused disasters and human trafficking, both domestically and internationally. In addition, Nicole provides training and technical assistance to the broader community on the traumatic impacts, underlying causes, and the prevention of exploitation among youth and adults.

Prior to federal service, Nicole served at World Relief and World Hope International, leading anti-human trafficking efforts for the faith community. She was also as a Presidential Management Fellow with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In addition, she served on Capitol Hill with former civil rights leader, the late Congressman John Lewis.

Nicole completed post-graduate work in inter-religious educational training with Religions for Peace USA and World Council of Churches’ Bossey Ecumenical Institute in Switzerland. She has a Master of Urban Ministry from Wesley Theological Seminary, a Master of Public Health in International Community Health and Health Promotion from Emory University, and a Bachelor of Anthropology and Environmental Studies from Adelphi University.