Senior Management Team

The Rev. Phillip A. Jackson was named the 19th Rector of Trinity Church Wall Street in February 2022, serving as the spiritual leader of the parish and managing operations, parish programs, the clergy, staff, and all resources and facilities of the church. Prior to his institution as Rector, Fr. Jackson served as Priest-in-charge for two years.

Fr. Jackson joined Trinity in 2015 as Vicar, leading ministry programs that touch upon every aspect of parish life, including liturgies, music, education programming, membership, and stewardship. Before coming to Trinity, Fr. Jackson was the rector of Christ Church of the Ascension in Paradise Valley, AZ. Ordained in 1994, he also served parishes in Houston and Detroit, and was an attorney in Honolulu.

Fr. Jackson holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Amherst College, where he currently sits on the board of trustees. He also was awarded a Juris Doctorate from Yale Law School and a Master of Divinity from The Church Divinity School of the Pacific. Fr. Jackson is married to Page Underwood, an attorney.

Fr. Jackson sits on several boards, including The Anglican Communion Compass Rose Society, the Alliance for Downtown New York, the Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center, and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.

A native Chicagoan, he is nevertheless proud to call New York home.

The Rev. Michael A. Bird was named vicar of Trinity Church in December 2020. In this role, he leads programs that touch upon every aspect of parish life, including liturgies, music, education and formation events and courses, pastoral care, membership, stewardship, and Trinity’s outreach within its buildings and across the city. He is also responsible for the programmatic oversight of Trinity Commons — a community center built for the neighborhood — and the Trinity Retreat Center in West Cornwall, Connecticut.

Before coming to Trinity, Father Bird was the rector of Christ Church in Bronxville, New York, a role he assumed in 2004. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1997, and his first position was at St. Mark’s in New Canaan, Connecticut, where he began as associate rector for Youth and Family Ministry.

Throughout his career, Father Bird has focused on building and fostering vibrant communities of faithful people, with a particular emphasis on youth.

Father Bird holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Swarthmore College and a Master of Divinity from General Theological Seminary.

Kenneth Austin has served as chief legal officer of Trinity Church since January 2024. For 11 years prior to this, Austin was general counsel and vice president of Policy Engagement at the Wallace Foundation.

Austin served for many years as a senior executive of several national philanthropic organizations based in New York City. From 2018 to 2024, he served on the board of directors of Philanthropy New York, and for two years he was the organization’s board chair.

For five years, Austin was managing partner of ClassicManhattan, a New York real estate firm. He was also a founding board member of govWorks, Inc., an e-government services and iInternet provider, where he served as director of business development, corporate secretary, and chief legal officer, and was featured in Startup.com, an award-winning documentary about the company. Austin also worked as a corporate associate with Davis Polk & Wardwell in London and New York City. He began his career as an honors attorney with the U.S. Treasury Department in Washington, DC.

Austin is a graduate of the Bronx High School of Science and received an AB in government from Harvard College and a JD from Yale Law School.

Lisa Benenson is the chief communications officer at Trinity Church, serving on the organization’s executive management team and leading communications strategies and initiatives, marketing and brand, and digital presence.

Benenson previously worked at the United Nations as the deputy director of Communications for UNICEF, leading the organization's media, digital, and internal communications teams; at the Brennan Center for Justice as vice president, Communications and Strategy; and as chief communications officer for the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Before beginning her career in nonprofits, Benenson was a journalist. She was a consulting editor at Newsweek and The Daily Beast, the founding editor of Hallmark Magazine, and the editorial director at Working Mother and Working Woman magazines. Earlier in her career, Benenson worked for Newsday, where she was a reporter and served as the assistant national editor, and for The Denver Post, where she held various positions, including metro editor and Sunday editor.

Benenson has appeared on NBC’s Today show and was a contributor for the weekend Today show. She has also appeared on NBC Nightly News, CBS Evening News, Oprah, Good Morning America, the Fox Report, and other national broadcast programs.

Beatriz (Bea) de la Torre serves as the chief philanthropy officer of Trinity Church, where she oversees philanthropic work across four initiatives: racial justice, housing and homelessness, mission real estate development, and leadership development. Prior to this appointment, de la Torre was managing director for Trinity’s Housing and Homelessness initiative, securing and implementing high-impact interventions to break the cycle of mass homelessness in New York City.

Before joining Trinity, de la Torre managed the housing and homelessness portfolio at the Robin Hood Foundation and previously worked in New York City government for eight years, including various positions at the Department of Housing Preservation and Development. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and received her master’s degree in urban planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. De la Torre serves on various boards, including those of CUNY’s School of Professional Studies Foundation, Philanthropy New York, and the Clemente Soto Velez Center. She is frequently called on to advise government and community-based groups on homelessness and affordable housing. A native Spanish speaker from Puerto Rico, she lives in Pelham, New York, with her husband and three kids.

Maxine Griffith is chief infrastructure and facilities officer at Trinity Church. In this role, she leads planning, development, and operations for the church’s mission properties and oversees the departments of Safety & Security and Trinity Archives.

Before coming to Trinity, Griffith was executive vice president and special advisor for Campus Planning at Columbia University, coordinating planning and development for the 22-building, 17-acre Manhattanville campus. Prior to that appointment, Griffith was executive director of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission and secretary (deputy mayor) for Strategic Planning. She has also held leadership positions at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the New York City Planning Department.

Griffith serves on the boards of the Regional Plan Association; Claremont Lincoln University; and HYPOTHEkids, an organization providing science education to disadvantaged students. She is also an adjunct faculty member of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation.

Griffith earned a BA cum laude from Hunter College and a Master of Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley. She holds certificates in urban planning and design, real property finance, and affordable housing development from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design.

Meredith Jenkins is chief investment officer for Trinity Church, where she is responsible for the investment management and oversight of the church’s endowment and real estate holdings, as well as overseeing Trinity’s grant-making team.

Prior to joining Trinity, Jenkins was from 2011 to 2016 the co-chief investment officer of Carnegie Corporation of New York, the philanthropic foundation established by Andrew Carnegie. She joined Carnegie Corporation in 1999 and, after moving to Hong Kong in 2007 for family reasons, Jenkins served as the corporation’s special representative to Hong Kong, focusing on investment opportunities in Asia. Before joining Carnegie Corporation, she was a buy-side equity research associate for Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. and an investment banking analyst at Goldman Sachs.

Jenkins received a BA in English language and literature with distinction from the University of Virginia, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and an MBA from Harvard Business School. She serves on the investment committees and boards of trustees of the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation and the Windward School; on the investment committee of Brandywine Group Advisors; and as an independent advisor to Grosvenor’s Group Investment Committee.

Jim Johnson is the chief operating officer of Trinity Church. He assumed this role after 36 years in the public, private, and not-for-profit sectors, including a position as the 79th corporation counsel for New York City. Both Trinity Church and the NYC Law Department have served the city for more than 325 years, and in Johnson’s leadership roles, he has grappled with the challenges of housing and homelessness, inequality, and development. His public service on both sides of the Hudson includes two years as special counsel to New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, managing the state’s role in Atlantic City social and economic development, and seven years as federal monitor in a fair housing settlement in New York’s Westchester County.  He is also vice chair of the Regional Plan Association of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.

Johnson was a partner at Debevoise & Plimpton LLC for 12 years and served as a senior official in the Clinton administration, including as undersecretary of the Treasury.

A graduate of both Harvard College and Harvard Law School, Johnson serves on the Harvard Board of Overseers and on the boards of the Brennan Center for Justice (as chair), the Citizens Campaign (as vice chair), and the Academy of American Poets. He has also served on the boards of the Montclair Arts Museum, the Montclair Film Festival, and JAZZ HOUSE KiDS.

Johnson is married to Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights.

Kevin Kirchoff is the chief financial officer of Trinity Church, where he is responsible for finance and accounting, budgeting and planning, and audit and control processes for the consolidated activities of Trinity and its subsidiaries.

Prior to joining Trinity, Kirchoff served as a senior associate dean of Finance and Administration at New York University and previously was the financial lead for the Motion Picture Association and the Loan Syndications and Trading Association, in addition to working in the Investment Management Group at Citibank, Wall Street. While with the Motion Picture Association, a trade association for the film industry, Kirchoff worked to establish financial operations in its London and Paris offices.

Kirchoff received an MBA from Columbia University Business School (Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society) and obtained a CPA in New York State. Kirchoff also earned systems and project manager certifications from Columbia University and other accrediting agencies, including Scaled Agile project management.

Waajida L. Small, PhD, has over 20 years of experience as a human resources practitioner. She currently serves as the chief human resources officer for Trinity Church. Before stepping into this role, Small served as Trinity’s director of Human Resources Operations and director of Organizational Development. Prior to joining Trinity, she worked at the Wildlife Conservation Society as director of Human Resources for Domestic Operations. Small earned her BA in management and administration from the City College of New York, an MBA in executive management from St. John's University, and a PhD in human capital management from Bellevue University.

Patti Walsh is chief of staff to the rector at Trinity, a position she has held since May 2022. In this role, she is responsible for ensuring the rector’s time and attention are aligned to Trinity’s and the rector’s priorities and allocated appropriately for different stakeholders, including the vestry, congregation, staff, and external partners, such as the Episcopal Diocese of New York, the Anglican Communion, The Episcopal Church, and Trinity grantees and partners.

Walsh joined Trinity Church in September 2017 as chief communications officer, where she was responsible for all communications and marketing activities, including media and public relations, marketing, content creation and distribution, thought leadership, and reputation management.

Before coming to Trinity, Walsh was the leader of employee communications at Dun & Bradstreet. She began her career in journalism and has more than 25 years of experience in global corporate communications in various industries, including media and publishing, financial services, and pharmaceuticals.

Walsh holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Marist College. She is married and has two adult children.

Elizabeth Warnick is the chief strategy officer of Trinity Church. In this role, she oversees Trinity’s leadership development programming, including Trinity’s relationship with its seminary, the Church Divinity School of the Pacific, and Trinity’s faith-based leadership training program, the Trinity Leadership Fellows. Warnick also serves as a liaison for several Trinity initiatives within The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion. Warnick joined Trinity in 2016, and from 2017 to 2020 she served as Trinity’s lead counsel (chief legal officer).

Prior to joining Trinity, Warnick worked in the litigation practice of a major New York law firm, where she specialized in internal and regulatory investigations and advised on matters of corporate governance. Before attending law school, Warnick spent almost 20 years working in various positions in the music industry. She holds a BA in political science from Wayne State University and a JD from the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law.