On June 26th, Mayor de Blasio appointed Joseph K. Adams Sr. to the NYCHA Board of Directors.  Adams is the first 237 member or retiree to serve on the board!

The NYCHA Board is comprised of seven members appointed by the Mayor, including three members who are current residents of public housing and have a

direct say in NYCHA’s operations. Board members’ duties include voting on contracts, resolutions, policies, motions, rules and regulations that affect all NYCHA residents.

Adams is exceptionally well qualified. He served for many years as a Local 237 Shop Steward and Grievance Representative and has been a NYCHA resident for more than 20 years.  His practical experience will be a great asset to NYCHA as the board tackles unprecedented challenges.   

Joseph K. Adams Sr. currently resides at Manhattan’s Sondra Thomas Apartments. He is a former resident of Manhattan’s Woodrow Wilson Houses and the Bronx’s Patterson Houses. Adams’ extensive experience in advocating on behalf of the community is reflected through the jobs he’s held and his volunteer work over the past few decades.

He is a member of New York Communities for Change, was Vice President of John Jay College’s Able Forces Club (which advocates for students with disabilities), and. A School Safety Agent for over 15 years, he later worked at his alma mater, CUNY’s John Jay College of Criminal Justice, as a Research Assistant for a professor in the Department of Africana Studies and as a Research Coordinator in the Women’s Center’s Department of Counseling.

While overcoming a learning disability, Adams obtained his High School Equivalency Diploma. He later earned his bachelor’s degree and Master of Public Administration degree from John Jay College. Adams received certification in public advocacy and leadership from the Joint Public Affairs Committee’s Institute for Senior Action.

He raised four of his six children as a single parent while living in public housing, and was proud to see them graduate from elite high schools and universities, including Harvard University and the University of Chicago.

The entire leadership and staff of Local 237 applauds his appointment to the NYCHA Board of Directors and wishes him and the entire board success in improving and preserving our city’s public housing.