Felicia Davis Blakley

Felicia Davis Blakley is the CEO of Primo Center, a Chicago-based nonprofit dedicated to providing shelter, support, and services to families experiencing homelessness. Under her leadership, Primo Center takes a holistic approach to breaking the cycle of homelessness through housing, trauma-informed care, mental health services, early childhood programs, and workforce development initiatives.
A socially conscious executive leader, Felicia leads with radical authenticity, unparalleled passion, and an inspirational vision. With a proven track record in government, public policy, higher education, and philanthropy, she is deeply committed to advancing equality and equity and believes in the power of collective action to transform lives, families, and communities.
Previously, Felicia served as President and CEO of the Chicago Foundation for Women (CFW), where she successfully completed the organization’s Comprehensive Fundraising Campaign, raising $45 million over four years. Under her leadership, CFW launched the SHEcovery™ initiative in 2021, a commitment to identifying, uplifting, funding, and supporting a more equitable system to help women and families emerge stronger from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Felicia is an engaged civic leader, serving on several boards and initiatives.
Past civic leadership includes serving on the Illinois Senate Sexual Discrimination, Harassment Awareness, and Prevention Task Force. She is a 2014 Leadership Greater Chicago (LGC) Fellow and a 2016 Illinois Women’s Institute for Leadership (IWIL) Delegate.
Felicia is a member of the Board of Regents at Mercy Home for Boys and Girls, a Trustee and Board Co-chair with Court Theatre at the University of Chicago, and a Board Member at The Partnership for College Completion and the Better Government Association. She also contributes nationally, serving on the NIH’s National Community Engagement Group for RECOVER, a research initiative seeking to understand, prevent, and treat PASC, including Long COVID. Previously, she served as one of RECOVER’s inaugural National Co-chairs and Executive Committee members. Felicia is an active member of The Chicago Network, the Executives’ Club of Chicago, and the Economic Club of Chicago.