United Way of Tucson and Southern Promotes Arika Wells
United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona has announced the promotion of Arika Wells to the position of executive VP and COO. Wells came on board with United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona in July 2023 as COO.
Wells is a human resources and operations professional, having worked with the Pima County Attorney’s Office as legal administrator, providing strategic direction over the human resources, IT, finance, and operations functions in the office before coming over to United Way.
Her volunteer footprint in Tucson includes more than nine years of service on the Women United Executive Board. She also served as secretary for the Marana Broncos Youth Football & Cheer organization for more than two years, as well as previous president of the Eta Epsilon Omega graduate chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. in Tucson. Wells is also a Certified Nonprofit Professional.
Wells holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of San Diego, and a master’s degree in public administration from National University. She has more than 10 years of human resources and business operations experience with the City of Tucson, University of Arizona, Pima County, and Tucson Unified School District. A native of San Diego, Wells has called Tucson home since 2013.
“It has been a privilege to serve as COO of United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona and I am both humbled and thrilled to now serve in this new position,” said Wells. “The challenges are great, the needs are many, and I look forward to taking on this new task as our organization continues to serve individuals, families, and our community at large. I am grateful for the trust invested in me by our board and our president and CEO, Tony Penn, and will do everything I can to honor that trust.”
“Arika has earned my trust, as I promote her to the position of executive vice president, COO, and we are pleased to see her take on new challenges in this capacity,” said Tony Penn, president and CEO of United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona. “I know that she will help United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona in the execution of our new strategic plan.”
