Kelvin A. Jeremiah

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Jeremiah in 2014

Kelvin A. Jeremiah (born December 15, 1972, in Grenada) is President and CEO of the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA). He oversees the day-to-day operations of the 4th largest housing authority in the country.[1] His approach to housing communities expands beyond affordable housing. Jeremiah has an interest in creating communities that provide access to good education and are crime free.[2]

Early life and education[edit]

Jeremiah emigrated from Grenada to the United States as a teenager in 1988. He lived with his family in Brooklyn, New York, where he attended Erasmus Hall High School. He received a Bachelor's degree in History/Business Administration from Pace University in 1995. He holds two advanced degrees, a Master of Arts in American Social History from Rutgers University and a Master of Public Administration from American International College.[3]

Career[edit]

Jeremiah began his career in public housing as a Compliance Officer/Housing Investigator with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination where he investigated discrimination allegations involving housing, public accommodations, and education. In 2004, Jeremiah joined the Springfield Housing Authority in Springfield, Massachusetts. He worked there for over two years before moving on to the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), the nation's largest public housing authority. In his role as Inspector General at NYCHA, Jeremiah had oversight authority for the largest housing authority in North America with a $5B budget. He established and defined standard operating practices and provided organizational leadership to ensure peak performance and to protect against fraud, waste, and mismanagement.[4][5]

Jeremiah next accepted a position at the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) in August 2011. He became the agency’s first Director of Audit and Compliance, in which he instituted policies designed to ferret out waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement. In 2012, Jeremiah became the HUD-appointed Administrative Receiver and the Interim Executive Director of PHA. He was appointed President and CEO in March 2013, and within his first month, the agency was able to return to local control.[1]

In 2022, Jeremiah incorrectly claimed that between 2017 and 2021 PHA did not absorb the cost of incoming Housing Choice (Section 8) vouchers from out-of-town residents that opted to move to Philadelphia rather than remain in the locale where they were granted their voucher.[6] In fact, PHA absorbed vouchers from 715 non-local families that transferred their vouchers to Philadelphia, despite PHA being under no obligation to do so and having a waiting list of 2,100 local families requesting Housing Choice vouchers.[7]

Jeremiah has been honored by the Philadelphia Business Journal as a Minority Business Advocate and as one of the Most Admired CEOs for established leaders with a strong record of innovation in their field, outstanding financial performance, a commitment to quality, a strong vision, a commitment to diversity in the workplace, and contributions to the Greater Philadelphia/New Jersey region[8]

Despite federal budget cuts, Jeremiah has committed to creating or preserving 6,000 affordable housing units in Philadelphia over a five-year period.[9] The “6 in 5” Initiative calls for PHA to partner with public, private, nonprofit, and publicly-minded organizations to meet the huge demand for affordable housing.[10] Since January 2014, the initiative has produced almost 3,800 housing units, including those that are planned or completed by the agency, project based units, and third party development.[11]

The 6 in 5 Initiative includes the Sharswood/Blumberg Transformation Initiative in North Philadelphia. The first phase of this ten-phase development was completed in November 2016. As part of that first phase, Jeremiah signed the closing documents for the first ever Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) transaction in the City and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The purpose of the RAD Program is to provide reliable, long-term, project-based rental assistance that will enable owners to leverage other public and private funding to create and support strong local communities.[11]

PHA also signed an agreement to develop a new supermarket in the neighborhood, which has been a food desert. Lastly, the Housing Authority and the School District of Philadelphia reopened the former Vaux High School in the neighborhood in September 2017. PHA has committed to invest as much as $15 million in the restoration of the building, which is on the national record of historic sites.[12]

Under Jeremiah, the housing authority opened a Jobs Plus program at the Raymond Rosen Community Center in North Philadelphia in mid-summer 2016. The program allows residents to conveniently access the job related services they need to get ahead economically at a “one stop” service center. PHA and its partners are investing combined resources valued at $6.79 million over the next four years, in addition to a $2.7 million grant from HUD.[13]

At Jeremiah’s direction, PHA established PhillySEEDS, Inc. This award-winning, 501(c) non-profit corporation has produced more than $1,000,000 in scholarship money for deserving college students since 2013. The charitable organization has also provided more than 9,500 book bags stuffed with school supplies to residents, and has assisted over 30 PHA families buy their first home by providing first time homebuyer’s and closing cost assistance.[14]

'Jeremiah worked for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Early Care and Education, formerly the Office of Child Care Services, where he was the Regional Contracts Manager and Monitoring Coordinator. He also served as Compliance Officer at the Commission Against Discrimination in Springfield, Massachusetts, where he investigated discrimination complaints involving housing, education, and public accommodation.

Personal life[edit]

Jeremiah is married and has three children Angelina, Kevvon, and Adina.[citation needed]

Certifications and public leadership positions[edit]

Jeremiah is a Certified Public Purchasing Official, a Certified Public Housing Management Specialist, and is a member of Philadelphia's Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity Oversight Board.[15] [16] In October 2017, Jeremiah was appointed by Mayor Jim Kenney to the Mayor's Eviction Prevention and Response Task Force. [17]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Shared Files - Acrobat.com". Files.acrobat.com. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  2. ^ "To Rebuild a Neighborhood, Philadelphia Goes Beyond Housing". The New York Times. 3 May 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  3. ^ "Introducing the 2016 Most Admired CEOs". Bizjournals.com. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  4. ^ "PHA Adds NYC Housing Official". Nbcphiladelphia.com. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  5. ^ "Philly Housing Authority adds NYC housing official". Wsj.com. 11 August 2011. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  6. ^ "Loophole Allows Hundreds of Families to Skip Philly's Housing Waiting List". NBC10 Philadelphia. November 16, 2022. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  7. ^ "Loophole Allows Hundreds of Families to Skip Philly's Housing Waiting List". NBC10 Philadelphia. November 16, 2022. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  8. ^ "Shared Files - Acrobat.com". Files.acrobat.com. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  9. ^ Williams, Damon C. "Kelvin Jeremiah on mission to reform PHA". Phillytrib.com. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  10. ^ "KELVIN JEREMIAH: New PHA Director Brings Major Changes - Philadelphia Public Record". Phillyrecord.com. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  11. ^ a b "Moving to Work Annual Plan" (PDF). Philadelphia Housing Authority. 2016.
  12. ^ Ryanne Persinger. "Ben Carson celebrates opening of Vaux High School". Phillytrib.com. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  13. ^ Fattah, Office of Congressman Chaka. "Fattah Announces $2.7 Million Jobs Plus Grant to Philly Housing Authority". Prnewswire.com. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  14. ^ "Annual Report, 2017" (PDF). PhillySEEDS, Inc.
  15. ^ "About the Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity (CEO) - Shared Prosperity". Sharedprosperityphila.org. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  16. ^ "Philadelphia Housing Authority Interim Executive director made permanent - The Philadelphia Sunday Sun". Philasun.com. 14 March 2013. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  17. ^ "Mayor Announces New Eviction Task Force - Department of Human Services - Press Release". City of Philadelphia. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
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