DaVida Rowley-Blackman

DaVida Rowley-Blackman is an impact-driven, equity-focused, and people-centered servant leader with more than two decades of experience in the public service sector. Prior to joining the Housing Opportunities Commission (HOC), she served as the Senior Director of Resident Participation and Civic Engagement at the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) — the largest public housing organization in North America.

As Senior Director at NYCHA, Mrs. Rowley-Blackman led a team dedicated to providing critical services to over 500,000 public housing residents. Under her leadership, the department underwent a major transformation which included the implementation of a new resident engagement model focused on ensuring equity across all 30 NYCHA neighborhoods, improved overall service delivery to residents, and strengthened relationships with key resident leadership groups and external partners.

Mrs. Rowley-Blackman previously served as a Senior Advisor and Director of Public-Private Partnerships at NYCHA. In this dual role, she coordinated post-pandemic support for thousands of vulnerable residents, oversaw federal, state, and private grants, collaborated with external partners to secure critical resources for residents, led the relaunch of the Fund for Public Housing, and managed the overall performance of six resident-facing departments.

Mrs. Rowley-Blackman has an immense passion for serving others and has worked with a diverse array of high-need populations including in-school-youth, out-of-school youth, adults receiving public assistance, and multi-generational families residing in public housing. She has received several accolades for her commitment to service including the NYC Mayor’s Excellence in Service Award and the NYC Human Resources Administration’s Most Inspiring Leader Award.

Mrs. Rowley-Blackman is an alumna of Hunter College where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Baruch College where she studied Public Administration at the master’s level. She is also a published author. She enjoys motivational speaking, traveling throughout the Caribbean, spending time with her family, and supporting teen moms as a mentor with the Young Life program.