People

The Alliance for Healthy Homes has appointed Robert Zdenek as its new executive director. Zdenek has a wealth of experience in housing and nonprofit management. He served as president of the National Congress for Community Economic Development for 13 years and then served in leadership positions at the United Way. Most recently, Zdenek ran his own consulting firm focused on asset building strategies, organizational change and community economic development initiatives. Zdenek is vice-president of the National Housing Institute board and a contributing editor to Shelterforce. He succeeds Don Ryan, who founded the Alliance in 1990 as the Alliance To End Childhood Lead Poisoning.

Jack Boger, board chair of the Poverty and Race Research Action Council, received the 2005 Frank Porter Graham Award from the North Carolina Civil Liberties Union “for achievement in advancing and defending civil liberties in North Carolina.”

Steven McCullough is the new president and chief executive officer of Bethel New Life, Inc. McCullough was Bethel’s chief operating officer for four years. He replaces former president Mary Nelson.

New York City-based City Harvest has named Sally Hernandez Pinero as executive director. Hernandez Pinero previously served as chair of the New York City Housing Authority, as the city’s deputy mayor for finance and economic development, as deputy borough president of Manhattan and as chair of the Financial Services Corporation of New York City. She also served as managing director of Fannie Mae’s American Communities Fund.

Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership selected Marvin Greer as its new housing development director. Greer previously served as executive director for Urban Residential Development Corporation in Atlanta. He has also worked in California and New York promoting housing and community development.

The National Conference for Community and Justice has named Robert Harrod president and chief executive officer and Christine M.J. Oliver as interim national board chair. For the past 21 years, Harrod was executive director of NCCJ’s Greater Cincinnati regional office. He previously served as founding president of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. Oliver is president and chief executive officer of the Chicago Dwellings Association. She serves on the boards of Enterprise Mortgage Investments, Inc., a subsidiary of the Enterprise Foundation; the Center for Housing Policy; and the Leadership Council for Metropolitan Open Communities in Chicago.

Local Initiatives Support Corporation and a subsidiary, the National Equity Fund, announced a partnership with One Economy to build more than 15,000 affordable homes with high-speed digital Internet connectivity and provide low-income families access to computers and technology services. The $1 billion “access@home” initiative will develop houses and apartments in communities across the country over the next five years. Residents in each of these properties will also receive a package of Internet-related services from One Economy, which expects to connect nearly 100,000 people to the Internet through the initiative. www.lisc.org and www.one-economy.com

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation awarded $2 million to Payne Lake Community Partners to support an initiative designed to help inexperienced purchasers and new homeowners overcome cultural and language barriers. The effort will help connect new and prospective homeowners with a network of advisers to provide counsel on home selection and financing; develop and promote cultural- and language-specific homeownership programs; develop and promote innovative financing tools; and create partnerships with employers to promote savings programs. www.knightfdn.org

The Freddie Mac Foundation has awarded a $550,000 grant to the Center for Multicultural Human Services (CMHS) to support the acquisition of five additional transitional housing units in Northern Virginia. CMHS, a mental health agency serving the region’s growing immigrant community, provides an array of direct services and training programs to more than 8,000 individuals, including 1,000 children. www.freddiemacfoundation.org

The Urban Homesteading Assistance Board has received a MetLife Foundation Award for Excellence in Affordable Housing in the Property and Asset Management category, which honors nonprofit organizations for excellence in operational and financial oversight. www.uhab.org

NeighborWorks America honored eight community leaders for their dedication to community building with the Dorothy Richardson Awards. Recipients are: Joseph Contreraz Sr., Sacramento Neighborhood Housing Services, Sacramento, CA; Evangeline Best, Corporation to Develop Communities of Tampa, Inc., Tampa, FL; Arturo Estrada, Homewise, Santa Fe, NM; Lisa Quintana, Oak Hill Community Development Corp., Worcester, MA; Amelia Remmert, Neighborhood Housing Services Inc., Kalamazoo, MI; Jesus Torres Rentas, Ponce Neighborhood Housing Services, Puerto Rico; Betty Jo Swanson, Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago, Inc.; and Paula Warrenfeltz, Neighborhood Housing Services of Baltimore, Inc. www.nw.org

The New York Housing Conference and the National Housing Conference salute individuals and organizations that have made New York a better place to live and work. The 2005 honorees for the Women in Housing Development Award are: Rosanne Haggerty, Common Ground Community HDFC, Inc.; Sydelle M. Knepper, SKA Marin; Carol Lamberg, Settlement Housing Fund, Inc.; Ronay Menschel, Phipps Houses; Joanne M. Minieri, Forest City Ratner Companies; Denise Notice-Scott, Local Initiatives Support Corporation New York City; and Amy Rose, Rose Associates, Inc. The Public Service Award was given to Judith Calogero, commissioner of the New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal. www.nhc.org