CHILDREN'S INVESTMENT FUND - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Senior Project Manager
- Senior Project Manager - Children 's Investment Fund
Job Titles:
- Supportive Housing Project Manager
Job Titles:
- President / Executive Director, Early Education for All Campaign, Strategies for Children
Job Titles:
- Executive Director, Asian Community Development Corporation
Job Titles:
- Executive Director, Institute for Early Education Leadership and Innovation, University of Massachusetts Boston
Job Titles:
- Director of Housing Development & Preservation
Bill Brauner brings 25 years of experience in affordable housing development and affordable housing lending to his role as Director of Housing Preservation and Policy for CEDAC. Bill provides technical assistance to nonprofits and public agencies regarding housing preservation, maintains a database of assisted properties, and assists nonprofit purchasers in preservation transactions.
Prior to coming to CEDAC in 2003, Bill worked as a developer of housing tax credit projects for the nonprofit Caleb Foundation, including several housing preservation deals. Earlier in his career, he developed ownership housing for Habitat For Humanity in Latin America.
Bill has a B.A. from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, OR, and a Masters in Intercultural Administration from SIT Graduate Institute in Brattleboro, VT.
Job Titles:
- Senior Project Manager
- Senior Project Manager - Children 's Investment Fund
- Senior Project Manager for the Children 's Investment Fund
Bree Horwitz is the Senior Project Manager for the Children's Investment Fund. In this role, she works directly with non-profit child care agencies as a lender and technical assistance provider, assisting borrowers as they plan and execute facility expansion and capital improvement projects.
She carries two decades of experience in the field of non-profit development, with nine years underwriting and providing technical assistance to community-based housing developers at CIF's sister agency CEDAC. Prior to joining CEDAC, she led economic development efforts in Boston's neighborhoods as executive director of a Boston Main Streets program, and managed development programs for larger non-profits engaged in health care, arts programming, and journalism.
Bree holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania.
Job Titles:
- Operations & Lending Assistant
Bryn joined CEDAC as the Operations & Lending Assistant in 2022. Prior to this role she was part of the Operations team at the Huntington's Calderwood Pavilion in Boston's South End, and worked in theatre production, administration, and new play development at nonprofit theatre companies in the Northeast and Kentucky. She has a BA in Theatre & French and a minor in Gender Studies from Oberlin College.
Job Titles:
- Principal, Sussman Associates
Job Titles:
- Project Manager
- Affordable Housing Project Manager
Cassie Mann is the Supportive Housing Project Manager at CEDAC. In this role, she underwrites and manages projects that receive funds through the three supportive housing loan programs - Facilities Consolidation Fund, Community Based Housing Fund, and Housing Innovations Fund - that CEDAC administers on behalf of the Commonwealth. She also provides technical assistance to CEDAC's non-profit development partners with regard to project development, financing and supportive services.
Prior to joining CEDAC in 2019, Cassie worked as a Project Manager with The Neighborhood Developers, Inc., a non-profit community development corporation (CDC) and affordable housing developer based in Chelsea, MA. In this role, Cassie was responsible for overseeing all phases of affordable housing development projects, including permitting, design, financing, construction, and lease-up.
She has a Master's degree in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University, and a Bachelor's degree in American Studies from Trinity College.
Job Titles:
- Program Assistant
- Program Assistant - Children 's Investment Fund
Job Titles:
- Senior Project Manager
- Senior Project Manager at CEDAC
Claire is a Senior Project Manager at CEDAC. In this role, she manages relationships with CEDAC's non-profit borrowers, underwrites requests for predevelopment and acquisition loans and state bond funding commitments, and provides technical advice and guidance to borrowers through the real estate development process.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director, Massachusetts Housing Partnership
Daniel Vo, Accounting Manager, is responsible for the agency's day-to-day internal general ledger activities and management, financial, and grant reporting. He assists senior management and program staff with financial matters as necessary and supports the effective communication of financial information throughout the agency.
Daniel joined CEDAC in 2016 and has held a few roles within the finance department. He began his work here as a junior accounting staff and took on more responsibilities as he moved to higher positions.
Daniel has a Master of Science in Finance from the University of Massachusetts Boston and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Suffolk University.
Job Titles:
- Director of Finance & Operations
Debbie Schnitzer joined the CEDAC team in August 2015 as the Director of Finance & Operations, and brings a wide range of community development and non-profit management experience to CEDAC. In her new role, Debbie's responsibilities include implementing CEDAC's strategic priorities and overseeing day-to-day financial operations. Additionally, Debbie supervises and manages CEDAC's administrative team.
Prior to joining CEDAC, Debbie served as Chief Financial Officer for the YWCA Hartford (CT) Region, which owns and operates a major supportive housing facility and four child care centers. Debbie has 18 years experience as a CFO for non-profit organizations. She has also worked as a commercial lender and a city economic development planner.
Debbie holds a Masters in Management from the Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, a Masters in Social Work from the University of Chicago School of Service Administration and a Bachelors from Harvard University.
Job Titles:
- Associate Director of Information Technology
- Associate Director of IT & Operations
Dilia Ramirez is Associate Director of Information Technology and Operations, where her responsibilities include overseeing the day to day administrative and information technology functions for CEDAC and its two corporate affiliates - the Children's Investment Fund (CIF) and the Commonwealth Workforce Coalition (CWC).
Dilia joined CEDAC in November 2010 as the Office Administrator, bringing a long history of office management to the agency. Prior to joining CEDAC, Dilia served for 12 years as a Legal Office Manager at an Immigration and Personal Injury firm.
Dilia holds a Bachelor's Degree in Exercise Science from Boston University.
Job Titles:
- Associate Director of Finance
Drusilla Pratt-Otto joined the CEDAC team in November 2017 as the Associate Director of Finance and brings a wide range of for-profit and non-profit experience to CEDAC. In her new role, Drusilla's responsibilities include supporting the Director of Finance & Operations in implementing strategic priorities for the agency and supervising the financial operations.
Prior to joining CEDAC, Drusilla provided part-time and interim chief financial officer and controller consulting services to both non-profit and for-profit entities for almost 20 years, including Community Servings, AIDS Action Committee of Massachusetts and Victory Programs.
Drusilla has an MBA from Simmons Graduate School of Management and is a Certified Public Accountant in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. She spent 5 years working in public accounting at PricewaterhouseCoopers in the Utilities, Higher Education and Not for Profit Practices. She also has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from New York University.
Job Titles:
- Chief Housing Officer, Executive Office of Elder Affairs
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder / Managing Director, Flex Investments LLC
Job Titles:
- Lending Operations Manager at CEDAC
Jaclyn Pacejo is the Lending Operations Manager at CEDAC. She assists with the closing of predevelopment loan commitments and maintaining complete loan files for CEDAC's portfolio of predevelopment, acquisition, and bridge loans.
Job Titles:
- Board Chair / Deputy Secretary, Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities
Job Titles:
- Treasurer / Senior Vice President, Community Impact, United Way of Massachusetts Bay & Merrimack Valley
Job Titles:
- Associate Director of Development
- Associate Director of Development - Children 's Investment Fund
Kira Wilke joined the Children's Investment Fund team at CEDAC in August 2016. Her current role includes project management, technical assistance, policy work, and strategy support. Prior to joining CEDAC, Kira worked to improve early education and care state policy at the Bessie Tartt Wilson Initiative for Children. She has over fifteen years of experience working in the non-profit sector and a commitment to the well-being of young children.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer, Madison Park Development Corporation
Job Titles:
- CEDAC 's Director of Housing for Central & Western Massachusetts
- Director of Housing for Central and Western Massachusetts
Lionel G. Romain, CEDAC's Director of Housing for Central & Western Massachusetts, has more than two decades of experience in commercial banking and community development. He has a comprehensive knowledge of affordable housing financing and funding programs andmechanisms including rental subsidies, federal and state housing and community development programs, and low-income housing tax credits. Lionel also has a thorough knowledge of loan underwriting techniques, financial analysis and forecasting, analysis and evaluation of financial statements. Additionally, he has a proven ability to handle complex workout and collection of troubled assets while minimizing losses.
Prior to joining CEDAC in October 2008, Lionel was a Senior Program Officer in the LISC (Local Initiatives Support Corporation) Boston office where he was responsible for all lending activities and initiatives in the Greater Boston area. He has also worked as a commercial lender and process engineer.
Lionel currently sits on the board of the Cooperative Fund of New England (vice president), and previously served as the treasurer. He has volunteered for several years with Community Action as a VITA tax preparation volunteer. He previously served on the board of a number of organizations, including the CDC of Dukes County (president and treasurer), Valley CDC (president and treasurer), LISC's Educational Facilities Financing Center (EFFC) Advisory Board, Non-Profit Finance Fund New England Advisory Board, Martha's Vineyard Public Charter school (Treasurer), and Martha's Vineyard Boys and Girls Club.
He holds an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis and a Sc. B. in Materials Science & Engineering from Brown University. He has also worked as a commercial lender and process engineer. He is fluent in French, Haitian Creole, and Lingala.
Madeline Nash is a Senior Project Manager with over twenty five years in the field of affordable housing development, planning, and lending. Before joining CEDAC, Madeline was a Senior Program Officer with LISC Boston where she led community lending activities, which included launching the Equitable Transit Oriented Development Accelerator Fund.
Prior to her time at LISC Boston, she was the Director of Real Estate Development at the Coalition for Affordable Housing (CBA) in Lowell, where she oversaw deals that included the adaptive reuse of historic school buildings, building supportive housing for formerly homeless families and veterans and the refinancing and rehabilitation of the 264-unit North Canal Apartments. Madeline also served as the Director of Real Estate at the Salem Harbor CDC (now incorporated as the North Shore CDC), where she managed several affordable housing projects for first time homebuyers.
Madeline has a Bachelor's Degree from Clark University, a Masters in Regional Planning from UMass Amherst, and is a graduate of the Achieving Excellence in Community Development Program sponsored by NeighborWorks America in partnership with the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She lives in Newburyport, MA where she has served on the Planning Board, Community Preservation Committee, and the Affordable Housing Trust.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, First Atlantic Capital, LLC
Job Titles:
- Treasurer / Vice President of Multifamily Programs, MassHousing
Job Titles:
- Board President, Children 's Investment Fund
- CIF Board Chair
- Principal / Studio MLA Michael Lindstrom Associates Architects
Job Titles:
- Operations Associate
- Operations Associate at CEDAC
Pearl Chan is the Operations Associate at CEDAC. Currently, she provides support in predevelopment lending for both housing and child care projects. She also provides general support of multiple functions of the office and for Children's Investment Fund.
Pearl joined CEDAC in June 2012 as the Operations Intern. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Simmons University.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor, Pediatrics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston Medical Center
Job Titles:
- Senior Vice President / Regional Manager, Commercial Banking Division, Rockland Trust
- Vice Chair / Senior Vice President / Regional Manager, Commercial Banking Division, Rockland Trust
Job Titles:
- Executive Director
- CEDAC Executive Director
- Chairman of the Interagency Supportive Housing Working Group
- Executive Director for the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation
Roger Herzog currently serves as the Executive Director for the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation (CEDAC), where he works with community development corporations (CDCs) and other non-profit organizations on new affordable and supportive housing development and assists tenants, owners, CDCs, and local communities on strategies for preserving existing affordable housing (expiring use and Section 8 projects).CEDAC plays a key role in the state's housing preservation efforts. Roger also serves as Executive Director of CEDAC's affiliate, the Children's Investment Fund, which provides financing and technical assistance to non-profit early education and out of school time providers.
In addition, Roger currently serves as the chair of the Interagency Supportive Housing Working Group, a Massachusetts initiative to create 1,000 units of permanent supportive housing and improve interagency collaboration.
As executive director, Roger brings over 25 years of experience in Massachusetts in the housing and community development field, including work in both the public and non-profit sectors. From 1993 until 1999, Roger worked on affordable housing programs for the City of Cambridge Community Development Department, including serving as the City's Housing Director from 1996 until 1999. While in Cambridge, Roger led the City's efforts to respond to major changes in the local housing market following the end of the City's 25-year old rent control system in 1995. Prior to joining the City, Roger served from 1987 to 1992 as the Community Development Director of Inquilinos Boricuas en Accion, Inc. (IBA), a large Boston-based CDC. While at IBA, Roger oversaw housing and community development efforts on rental, homeownership, expiring use, and special needs housing projects as well as a child care facility project.In the early 1980s, Roger worked for the Cambridge Housing Authority, administering the Section 8 and related leased housing programs.
Roger earned his B.A. from Brandeis University in 1980 and Master of City Planning degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1987.His Master's thesis addressed strategies for rehousing homeless families.
Rolando del Villar joined CEDAC in April 2018. As the Accountant Associate, he works closely with CEDAC's housing department and its borrowers processing deferred payment loan (HIF, FCF, CBH, HPSTF, AAHG, ARPA funds) and EEOST requisitions. In addition to his responsibilities, he is in charge of the employee payroll, benefits, billing, and everyday accounting tasks.
Prior to becoming an Accounting Associate, Rolando worked as an Operations and Lending Assistant at CEDAC for 4 years, and Program Coordinator at the Center for Social Policy at UMB for 2 years. While at CSP, Rolando worked closely with CEDAC running the Commonwealth Workforce Coalition (CWC) Annual Conferences.
Rolando received a bachelor's degree in Leadership and Organizational Change, College of Management at the University of Massachusetts Boston (UMB), MA. Notably, Rolando was part of the Mayor's Symposium: Housing for a Changing City honors course at UMB coming up with innovative ideas to battle homelessness and gentrification in Boston.
Job Titles:
- CEDAC 's Director of Supportive Housing
- Director of Supportive Housing
Sarah McKeever, CEDAC's Director of Supportive Housing, manages the organization's supportive housing programs. These programs, which CEDAC administers on behalf of the Commonwealth, provide soft debt to housing developers through the Housing Innovations Fund, Facilities Consolidation Fund, Community Based Housing, Accessibility Affordable Housing Grant, and ARPA funds. Sarah works directly with non-profit borrowers to provide technical assistance, predevelopment and acquisition lending for affordable and supportive housing projects in all stages of the development from initial feasibility to occupancy.
Sarah joined CEDAC in 2005 and has held many roles. She began her work here on the administrative team, closing acquisition, predevelopment, and child care loans, and also worked on portfolio management issues and overall program support. She also previously co-managed the Home Modification Loan Program, which CEDAC administers on behalf of the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission. In that role, she developed and implemented policy and procedural changes and provided training, support and managed contractual obligations with seven regional provider agencies throughout the Commonwealth.
Sarah received a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Oberlin College.
Job Titles:
- Clerk / President & CEO, ABCD
- Corporate Secretary / President / CEO, ABCD
Job Titles:
- Data & Portfolio Analyst
- Data and Portfolio Analyst at CEDAC
Stephan Weynicz is the Data and Portfolio Analyst at CEDAC, where he provides technical support for the many database applications in use at CEDAC. This includes report generation, troubleshooting, and managing system improvements.
Job Titles:
- Home Modification Loan Program Project Manager
Job Titles:
- Project Manager for the Home Modification Loan Program
Susan Gilliam is the Project Manager for the Home Modification Loan Program (HMLP). In her role, she oversees the day-to-day operations of the program. Additionally, Susan is responsible for all statewide efforts to increase awareness of the program.
Susan began working on HMLP in the Fall 2007. Prior to her work with HMLP, Susan was an AmeriCorps volunteer with the Central Vermont Community Land Trust. Susan also brings with her, experience working within the government sector, having worked for a member of congress and other state agency departments.
Susan holds a Master's in Public Policy & Management with a Certificate in Community Development from the University of Maine's Muskie School of Public Service and a Bachelor's from Clark University.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Director of Children 's Investment Fund
- Director of the Children 's Investment Fund
Theresa Jordan is Director of the Children's Investment Fund, a state-wide technical assistance, finance, and training organization serving early care and education and out-of-school time programs in Massachusetts focused on facility improvement and expansion projects. She carries three decades of experience in the field of non-profit development, with fifteen years underwriting and providing technical assistance to community-based housing developers at CIF's sister agency CEDAC.
Job Titles:
- Portfolio Associate
- the Portfolio Associate
Veronica (Ronni) Pelletier is the Portfolio Associate at CEDAC. She assists CEDAC's housing department and borrowers with asset management, loan compliance, and maintaining CEDAC's portfolio of Deferred Payment Loans.
Prior to joining CEDAC in 2022, Ronni worked as a Paralegal with Goldstein & Herndon, LLP in Brookline, MA. In this role, she was primarily responsible for coordinating with and providing assistance to parties within real estate legal transactions.
Veronica received a MS in Environmental Science and Policy, and a BA in Environmental Science from Clark University in Worcester, MA.
Job Titles:
- Project Manager
- Senior Project Manager for Supportive Housing
Will Morgan is the Affordable Housing Project Manager at CEDAC. He works closely with CEDAC's non-profit development partners to provide predevelopment and acquisition lending for early-stage affordable and supportive housing projects, and delivers significant technical assistance to borrowers throughout the predevelopment process. Will also underwrites and manages projects receiving soft debt through three supportive housing loan programs - FCF, CBH and HIF - that CEDAC administers on behalf of the Commonwealth. Will joined CEDAC in 2016 as the Supportive Housing Project Manager.
Prior to joining CEDAC, Will served as a Senior Project Manager with B'nai B'rith Housing, a Boston-based affordable housing developer, where his responsibilities included site prospecting, financial analysis and pre-development management. Will has eight years of experience in real estate development and consulting, with a specific focus on affordable and supportive housing.
Will holds a Master's degree in City & Regional Planning from the University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor's degree in Media Arts from Emerson College.