Lisa Tepper Bates is the President and CEO of United Way of Connecticut, where she focuses her efforts on leveraging the organization’s innovation to help residents thrive.
Lisa brings more than 30 years of experience working in U.S. diplomacy, public policy, state and nonprofit leadership to her role at United Way. Immediately before joining United Way, she served in the office of Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont, as Senior Coordinator for Housing and Transit-Oriented Development and as Chair of the Recovery and Immediate Needs Subgroup for the state’s COVID-19 emergency management team.
Prior to United Way, Lisa served as CEO for the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness (CCEH) and previously as the Executive Director of Always Home, a Mystic-based nonprofit serving families with children facing homelessness.
Her diplomatic career in the U.S. State Department spanned 14 years, representing the U.S. in Washington, D.C. and overseas, including roles supporting the U.S. Department of State’s most senior leadership and at the White House National Security Council. Her tours of duty included Poland, Albania and the former Yugoslavia, where she worked for several years on implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement the ended the war in Bosnia. The Department of State awarded Lisa with five Awards for Superior and Meritorious Honor in recognition of her contributions to U.S. diplomacy.
Lisa is committed to community service and has served as a board member and volunteer for numerous local and state organizations. Currently, she serves on the Board of the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority and is a former member of the Stonington Board of Police Commissioners.
The Hartford Business Journal named Lisa as one of 2025’s “Power 50” for her work in the state. Her work has also been recognized with the Hartford Business Journal Connecticut’s “Top 25 Women in Business” Award (2024); CT Voices for Children Family Economic Security Advocate Award (2024); the Hartford Business Journal Nonprofit Collaboration of the Year Award for work with Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence (2018); and the State of Connecticut Martin Luther King, Jr. Commission Award of Distinction (2018) for her work to end homelessness.
She holds a BA from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and an MBA from Yale School of Management and resides in Stonington with her husband Scott, son Jacob, dog Nelly and cat Boxer.
