Click on each member of the team to learn more about their contributions to HAND.
|
|
|
|
Courtney Battle is the Executive Director for the Housing Association of Nonprofit Developers (HAND). HAND’s growing network of members includes a wide variety of real estate and community development professionals in the Capital Region (Baltimore, Washington and Richmond) who share the mission of creating more equitable outcomes through the vehicle of affordable housing. Courtney believes that relationships are one of life’s cornerstones, and cultivating a strong network of changemakers who are transforming communities is vital to addressing the inequities that create barriers to opportunity.
Courtney joined the organization in October 2016 as Membership Manager, and was promoted to Membership Director in July 2019. In these capacities, she was responsible for: the recruitment, management and engagement of members; launching and administering the association management system for 1,000+ members and 400+ prospective members; implementing the organization’s marketing & communications initiatives (including the website, social media, e-blasts sent to 10,000+ inboxes, annual marketing materials, blog posts and the annual fundraiser digital program book distributed to 1,000+ attendees); the planning and execution of 40+ training and capacity building events each year; overseeing activities of the committee supporting the emerging leader member segment; and supporting the Executive Director in special projects.
In July 2021, Courtney was promoted to Director of Strategic Partnerships & Membership. In this role she led a wide range of projects designed to scale HAND’s reach across the region and increase the organization’s ability to build its members’ capacity. These included, but are not limited to: relationship building and strengthening; fundraising activities; assessing member needs that can be translated to programming and/or advocacy initiatives; serving as an ambassador for the organization in external events and media interviews; overseeing membership functions; and leading the marketing and communications strategy.
Courtney brings a wealth of experience in journalism and communications to her work. Prior to joining HAND, she served as an Account Manager for a local public affairs firm, and spent several years at CNN’s Washington, DC bureau as a News Assistant and Media Coordinator.
Service is also deeply embedded in her DNA, and Courtney has engaged with several community organizations which include Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Reading Partners, and Community ONE. She has the pleasure of serving as a Board member for Women of Color in Community Development, and was President of the Board from 2020-2021. She also successfully completed the Illuminate Your Leadership Nonprofit Coaching Program and Prosperity Now’s Building High Impact Nonprofits of Color initiative. She received her Bachelor’s degree from Howard University, where she majored in Journalism and minored in Afro-American Studies. She is originally from Southfield, Michigan, and has found a second home in Washington, DC.
I consider it an honor to work for an organization that plays such a critical role in increasing and maintaining affordable housing in the city that has been so good to me personally and professionally. This issue is one that touches all of us, and I am very excited to be involved in creating solutions to this pressing challenge.”
—Courtney Battle
Steven A. Palmer is the Director of Public Policy at the Housing Association of Nonprofit Developers (HAND). He is an attorney and public policy professional with a background in government service. As Director of Public Policy, Steven is responsible for leading the design and implementation of HAND’s policy advocacy agenda and serves as lead spokesperson for HAND’s Housing Indicator Tool.
Prior to joining HAND, Steven served in various legislative roles at the Council of the District of Columbia, where he drafted legislation, conducted agency oversight, and advised Councilmembers regarding a wide range of issues. In his time at the Council, he drafted and helped Councilmembers shepherd to passage legislation that removed racist covenents from deeds, protected the urban tree canopy, removed barriers to access for medical cannabis patients, increased transparency of staff salaries at charter schools, and strengthened the District’s ability to solve violent crimes.
After working on such a wide variety of issues at the Council, Steven saw that a lack of affordable housing is at the heart of most problems facing the District and surrounding region. He joined HAND to serve its members in their mission to create equitable communities anchored by affordable housing and to reverse the legacy of racial segregation and exclusion that still plagues the region’s residents to this day.
Originally from Olney, Maryland, Steven is a proud alumnus of the University of Maryland, College Park. After graduating from Harvard Law School, Steven immediately returned to the region to briefly practice law as an associate at Covington & Burling LLP before entering government service. He lives in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of the District with his wife, Katherine, and their very large corgi, Puff.
Increasing the supply of affordable housing in our region is the surest way to increase racial equity and improve the lives of everyone who lives here. It is an honor to serve those who dedicate their days to this vital pursuit.”
—Steven A. Palmer
Heather M. Raspberry is the Executive Director Emeritus of HAND, a cross-sector collective of changemakers whose strategic collaboration brings equitable communities to fruition in the Capital Region of Baltimore, Washington and Richmond. Through education, engagement and regional advocacy, HAND strengthens the capacity of its members who share a commitment to creating communities anchored by affordable housing. A values-driven and entrepreneurial leader, Heather believes that through thoughtful engagement and strategic collaboration, institutions and mission-driven stakeholders can disrupt systems of inequity to address the root causes that amplify housing disparities and restrict access to opportunity for communities of color.
Since her appointment in 2012, Heather has led HAND’s strategic, financial and administrative operations with innovative thinking and strong coalition building across sectors and jurisdictions. As a change association committed to centering racial equity, HAND identifies patterns of inequity, solves for the problems that persist, and activates its members to lead with collective action. Under her leadership, the organization has been deliberate in advancing the scale and depth of its programming and advocacy designed to empower HAND’s member base to operationalize racial equity within their respective institutions, while catalyzing impact for the communities they are missioned to serve.
Prior to her role with HAND, Heather held various leadership positions within the public, private and social sectors. While at Enterprise Community Partners, she executed national public relations campaigns to advance their business and philanthropic priorities. Additionally, Heather has designed resource development strategies and communication initiatives for housing & economic development coalitions, held public service positions with local and federal government, and managed political campaigns for elected officials. She has also operated a robust consultancy business that developed comprehensive branding strategies for companies to increase their competitive edge and impact.
Over the course of her career, Heather has been recognized for a number of accomplishments in the field. She was named the Court Appointed Special Advocate of the Year in recognition of her passion to represent the best interest of youth in foster care to the District of Columbia Family Court; honored as a Leader in Community Development by the Coalition for Nonprofit Housing & Economic Development; received Affordable Housing Finance’s Young Leader award; CREW DC’s Raise Up Your Voice award; Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing Celebrate Home! Award; University of Maryland Innovation & Entrepreneurship in Real Estate Award; and named Commercial Observer’s 25 Most Powerful Real Estate Players in Washington, DC. Heather serves on the boards Truist CRA Advisory Committee and City First Capital New Markets Tax Credit Board. She is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Leadership Greater Washington, and a Founding Board member of Women of Color in Community Development. Heather holds a dual bachelor’s degree in public relations and business management from Hampton University, earned the National Development Council’s Housing Development Finance Professional Certification, and completed NTL Institute’s Executive Leadership Program and Prosperity Now’s Building High Impact Nonprofits of Color initiative.
The challenges of providing housing that people can afford impact each local jurisdiction and thus our entire region. This is exactly why HAND plays a critical role in the support of the region’s affordable housing industry. Through thoughtful engagement and strategic collaboration, HAND’s collective membership has the ability to transform communities across the Washington, D.C. metropolitan region.“
—Heather Raspberry
The ARound Robin Production Company is a full service, script-to-screen elite film/video production firm. Emmy-award winning journalist Robin Hamilton is principal of the company, which works with a number of prestigious organizations, including HAND. Collaborating with the executive director’s vision, the ARound Robin Production Company has produced the Housing Achievement Award videos since 2017, profiling leaders in housing development across the metropolitan area.
Other clients include Shepherd’s Table, an area soup kitchen, Tzedek DC, an organization providing pro-bono legal services and the Capital Region YWCA.
The ARound Robin Production Company has also produced and released two documentary films, and Hamilton hosts specials for the local Tribune station, where her work has garnered 2 Emmy awards, 4 Salute to Excellence awards from the National Association of Black Journalists, and one Gracie Award.
For the company’s full portfolio, visit www.aroundrobin.com.
Susan Ortiz joined the Housing Association of Nonprofit Developers as the Program Director in April 2023. She brings with her an expertise in communications with a background in public and community relations.
As Program Director, Susan is responsible for the strategic planning and execution of HAND’s training and events calendar. Each year, HAND hosts more than 40 plus virtual and in-person events to help build the capacity of its collective to increase the affordable housing supply and build a more equitable region. Susan has launched HAND’s first-ever internship program, targeted to graduate and undergraduate students, furthering the GenerationHAND initiative’s commitment to preparing the DMV’s next generation of leaders. Susan also assists in HAND’s grant writing processes, drafting and editing applications to raise funds to support the curation of intentional programming and events.
Growing up, Susan aspired to be a housing and education reporter because she has always believed that access to housing and education are two fundamental human rights that everyone should have fair, easy access to. Nothing – race, class, gender – should be a barrier to someone’s access to a roof over their head or the opportunity to learn and thrive. Having a stable home is the root of building a foundation to grow upon. Being able to work with HAND provides Susan with the opportunity to collaborate with affordable housing professionals on ways to advocate for policies that will turn into actionable solutions for the region’s most vulnerable residents. Susan’s goal is to ensure that HAND programs and trainings are intentional, diverse and impactful.
Prior to joining HAND, Susan was the Public Relations Manager at the District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency (DCHFA), where she managed the agency’s website, social media, advertising, event planning, annual report and other external communications. During her tenure, she was able to build the Agency’s online presence by successfully scaling their LinkedIn page to be an example for other local housing institutions. In this role, Susan had the opportunity to collaborate with several different organizations to include government agencies, for-profit and non-profit developers, local officials and more – all of which has been crucial in her transition to engaging with HAND’s diverse membership. She received the MarCom Awards 2021 Gold Award in the Annual Report – Government category for her design and execution of the Fiscal Year 2020 report. Her experience at DCHFA has provided her with the foundational knowledge in affordable housing that is essential to her work here at HAND.
Susan earned her bachelor’s degree in media studies from the University of Virginia and earned a master’s degree in journalism from the Georgetown University School of Continuing Studies. She previously served as the Vice President of the Georgetown Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and was a member of Housing Up’s Associate Board from April 2021 to July 2022. She received a certificate in Data Visualization from Berkeley’s Advanced Media Institute. Her other passions include health and wellness; she works part-time at a local boxing gym to not only prioritize mental and physical health, but to connect and engage with her community. Susan is an avid reader who participates in several local book clubs and reviews books in her spare time.
I am excited for the opportunity to help forward HAND’s mission, ensuring residents throughout the DMV region have access to quality affordable housing and essential resident services. Providing safe, stable housing is simply the first step in helping residents thrive, and I am proud to work for an organization that wants to go miles beyond taking just that first step.“
—Susan Ortiz
Jen Lachman is an organizational consultant and coach who is deeply committed to supporting social change leaders, teams, and organizations. As the founder of Lachman Consulting (www.lachmanco.com), Jen helps mission-driven organizations create and sustain transformational change and specializes in strategic planning, leadership coaching, and team development. Jen has been honored to work with HAND’s staff and board to develop and execute a new strategic direction for the organization. In addition to her work with HAND, Jen has partnered with a variety of national and local organizations including Human Rights Campaign, Planned Parenthood, Miriam’s Kitchen, Meals on Wheels America, Teach for America, and N Street Village. Jen also serve as faculty for ProInspire’s Managing for Success Program.
Jen is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC) and a graduate of Georgetown University’s Executive Certificate Program in Organizational Consulting and Change Leadership. In her spare time, Jen can be found on her yoga mat, adventuring with her husband and two sons, or volunteering as a Board Member at Carpenter’s Shelter in Alexandria, VA.
Trianna Overton joined the Housing Association of Nonprofit Developers as the Program Associate in 2021. She is a Washington, DC native, who brings a wealth of experience in communications and administration to this role.
Prior to her work at HAND, she was an Office Manager for a local small business and has also served as a social media/communication coordinator for businesses in the publishing and home improvement sectors. She received her Bachelor’s degree from Temple University in Philadelphia, PA, where she majored in Public Relations. During her junior year of college her love of traveling led to her studying abroad in Italy. She also has volunteered in her community via organizations like Forgotten Cat and Passport to Global Temple.
I am eager to help support HAND’s mission of maintaining and increasing the supply of affordable housing in the DC region, because of the known benefits housing has towards bettering the quality of life of residents and communities. I also welcome working for an organization that fearlessly and compassionately marches toward achieving a more racially equitable and inclusive region.”
—Trianna Overton
Stacey is a freelance graphic and web designer and founder of The Smith Creative which helps nonprofits, dance companies and impact-driven businesses build cohesive visual brands. She has 15 years of experience in design, desktop publishing, proposal management, and most recently arts marketing. Wanting to get back to her creative roots, she started The Smith Creative to provide simple and strategic design solutions by offering brand identity, Squarespace web design, and graphic design services to organizations driven by mission.
Stacey has worked with HAND over the past year on various design projects including developing the branding for the 2021 Annual Meeting and revamping the look of HAND’s website.
When she’s not designing, Stacey is usually at dance rehearsals or a comedy show. For more information on The Smith Creative visit www.thescreative.com or email [email protected].
