East Lake Foundation

Ilham Askia is a seasoned nonprofit leader with a deep commitment to advancing social justice and equity. As president and CEO of the East Lake Foundation, she is responsible for leading the strategic vision and ongoing work with partners to ensure progress towards the Foundation’s mission. The East Lake Foundation was established in 1995 to revitalize the East Lake neighborhood in Atlanta by igniting new opportunities for families living there and creating a vibrant community where all residents thrive. The Foundation’s goal is to support programming that addresses mixed-income housing, the cradle-to-college and career continuum, community wellness, and economic vitality.

Prior to her role at the East Lake Foundation, Askia served as cofounder and executive director of Gideon’s Promise, a national nonprofit public defender organization whose mission is to transform the criminal legal system by building a movement of public defenders who provide equal justice for marginalized communities. Askia spent 15 years changing the culture of indigent defense representation in America. Under her leadership, Gideon’s Promise was also the subject of the award-winning HBO documentary Gideon’s Army.

She began her career as a Teach for America Fellow in the District of Columbia Public Schools. She later taught, facilitated teacher training, and wrote curriculum for public school systems in Washington, D.C., and Georgia. During her tenure in education, Askia worked with talented children who loved to learn, wanted to succeed, and desired to feel safe. However, many of her students were impacted by the effects of over-policing in their neighborhoods, limited resources, and inadequate legal representation. The latter was a lesson she learned earlier in life when both her father and brother were sentenced to prison.