Farewell to Rachel Fagen, Founding Director of Operations
Hey all.
We have some news, as always. The big one: Rachel Fagen is moving on from her role as founding Director of Operations for the Integrity Institute. She’s helped us build this organization and community, and I’m grateful for all the hard work she put in. Rachel really believes in this place and you can see it shine through in her farewell message.
Also some small news — we’re still accepting applications for Managing Director, and have gotten some good candidates so far! People seem to really like our elections deck. We’ve onboarded new staff. We’re gearing up for a staff retreat in New York City (know any great venues?).
But the big message of today belongs to Rachel. Here is her farewell message that she posted in our internal Slack:
Greetings Institute community,
After nearly two years building the Institute with Sahar Massachi, Jeff Allen, and the fantastic community of which you are all a part, I will be stepping down as Director of Operations for the Integrity Institute at the end of this month. It was such a tough decision to make! I believe so very much in the work that you all do, and I am honored to have been a part of it for so long. I am grateful to Jeff, Sahar, and many of my colleagues for the thoughtful conversations leading up to this moment.
When Sahar and Jeff, along with Katie Harbath as senior advisor, and Nichole Sessego as representative of the founding fellows/community hiring committee, invited me in for “a six-month gig” as the first employee back in January 2022, the Institute had launched just three months prior. Then, the community stood at 45 whole members – the biggest it had ever been! We were so proud to have $115,000 to our name. And in those first three months, the Integrity Institute community had already briefed members of Congress, brought much needed experience and expertise to the Christchurch Call, and had come together to substantively strengthen the EU Code of Practice on Disinformation.
In my job, I accomplished what I set out to do: I helped to create an internationally recognized, well funded, tight-knit, and thriving organization on the foundation of that member-driven success. The Integrity Institute has grown to 300+ members!! We’ve raised over $3,000,000 dollars, mostly in rare unrestricted operating support. We’ve built strong partnerships and relationships as we collectively built our impeccable reputation. This year, we’ve hired and developed an experienced and capable staff who expand our possibilities more and more every day. And, personally, I’ve learned more about the EU tender submission process than I ever thought possible. 🫠
I’m so proud of what I’ve had the chance to create by working with all of you. I’ve delighted in working with our funders and partners and colleagues, creating processes & documentation, interviewing and hiring our staff, running the many intersections of operations, and listening to and learning from all of you every day I have been part of Integrity Institute. I’m not going far (and will still be in Slack), but I am going to enjoy taking a breath to reflect and regroup before diving into what’s next for me. I’m really excited for what we’ve planned for the Integrity Institute this coming year and what all of you will do far beyond that.
I wish you all the best, and I'd love to stay in touch.
With all the gratitude in the world,
Rachel Fagen
From left to right: Jeff Allen, Rachel Fagen, and Sahar Massachi
Rachel, you have put so much into this organization. Thank you for all your hard work. The long nights, the big calls. You’ve been a champion of the organization, and our members, the entire time. Much of what we became traces back to you. These are some wonderful memories you’ve shared and you will be missed.
With appreciation,
Jeff Allen and Sahar Massachi, Integrity Institute co-founders
Katie here. I wanted to add my thanks to Rachel as someone who was a part of her hiring and working closely with her. Rachel, I can't thank you enough for what you've done to get the Integrity Institute off the ground. Your work and dedication have been top-notch and I'm so grateful. I can't wait to see what impact you have next.
Katie Harbath, Anchor Change chief executive and Integrity Institute elections lead