After a record-setting year of Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) production in 2023, National Equity Fund (NEF) welcomed three new members to its board of directors in Q1 2024. These members join a cohort of civic leaders who meet NEF's unique needs as an organization and will improve its impact on the communities it serves across the country.
While the average tenure on the 18-member board is more than nine years, NEF prioritized recruitment of leaders with diverse backgrounds as well as career expertise in areas like human capital management, information technology, and non-profit development to help round out the already strong caliber of NEF’s top advisors.
NEF’s new board members are:
Violet Clark, Acting General Counsel at UCAN (Chicago) with more than 30 years of experience representing for profit and non-profit companies as a partner at Laner Muchin, Ltd.
Al Morisato, retired Chief Operations and Technology Officer at Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) with more than 30 years of experience in information technology and business management.
Priya Jayachandran, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at National Housing Trust with previous leadership in Housing Development at Volunteers of America (VOA), Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and more than 15 years of experience in the community development real estate banking.
“At National Equity Fund, we are intentional about expanding our impact and strengthening our ability to help communities grow responsibly, especially when the need for affordable housing is at an all-time high,” said Matt Reilein, president and CEO at NEF. “We seek diverse perspectives at every level of our organization to ensure that NEF continues to operate optimally in service of our mission to expand the creation and preservation of affordable housing. This starts with our Board and carries through our employee base.”
Last fall, the Board also welcomed the new president and CEO of the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), Michael T. Pugh as Vice Chairman. Pugh brings 30 years of experience in banking to the board and most recently served as president and CEO of Carver Bancorp.
Pugh, Clark, Morisato, and Jayachandran join 14 long-standing NEF board members with credentials ranging in industry from banking to local non-profits. In addition to new members, Andrew Ditton was elected as the chairman of the board this year after serving as a member for more than 36 years. Ditton is the retired Managing Director of Citi Community Capital and Head of CRA Business Strategy and Execution at Citi Global Markets, Inc.
“It’s an honor to lead this influential community of leaders that helps NEF further its mission and create more housing stability throughout our nation,” said Ditton. “This Board is growing not only in numbers, but in knowledge and capability. I look forward to facing future opportunities and challenges head-on with the full support of this talented and energetic group of leaders.”
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