Simone N. Hennessee has been Executive Director of Providence House since 1992. Hennessee leads a staff of over 60 employees and oversees a budget of 3.5 million dollars. She also holds the professional designation of Certified Fundraising Executive from CFRE International.

During her tenure, Ms. Hennessee was appointed to the Louisiana Interaction Agency Council for the Homeless; was presented the Rotary Club’s Jean Harris Award for her work to improve the community; led a Summit on Children in Poverty at LSUS; was named as one of 10 Leaders for the Next Century by the Shreveport Times; received the Pete Harris Unity Award for her humanitarian work in the community by the National Conference of Community and Justice (NCCJ); attended Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government’s “Leaders for the 21st Century Conflict, Chaos, and Courage,” a one-week study with 60 leaders of government, non-profits, and businesses from around the world; coordinated a $1.9 million capital campaign to renovate the shelter; received the Volunteers for Youth Justice Ron Anderson “Champion for Children” Award; was awarded the Athena Award from the Women’s Business Council of the Shreveport Chamber of Commerce; was appointed to serve as Co-Chair of Governor Jindal’s transition team for the Department of Social Services; was awarded Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) certification through the Association of Fund Raising Professionals; and was appointed to serve on the Leadership Forum Advisory Board, which advises the State of Louisiana Department of Social Services, regarding policy, programs, and efficient business practices. She has steadfastly led Providence House through a tremendous growth pattern since its inception. 

Over the years and under the guidance of its Board of Directors and Ms. Hennessee, Providence House earned the “Standards of Excellence” certification by the Louisiana Association of Non-Profits (LANO), an accomplishment that only 57 out of 2,263 non-profit organizations in Louisiana have accomplished. In 2008, the Community Foundation of Shreveport-Bossier awarded Providence House with the first annual “Return on Investment” Award for taking a budget of $2.3 million and transforming it into an economic impact of $23 million, a testimony to our steadfast guarantee to our donors that we continue to be good stewards of their investment funds.