IMPACCT Celebrates Ms. Grier’s Distinguished Career at its Helm
Brooklyn, NY – The Board of Directors of IMPACCT Brooklyn, a nonprofit community-based organization with a mission to foster and preserve affordable housing and improve economic development in Central Brooklyn, announced that Bernell K. Grier is stepping down as Executive Director, effective March 1st. The Board will appoint Diana Breen as Interim Executive Director, while it conducts a national search for a permanent CEO.
Ms. Grier, who has served as Executive Director for the past seven years, will serve as Executive Director Emeritus until June 30, 2024, to help onboard Ms. Breen in her new role and consult with IMPACCT’s leadership for a seamless transition.
“It has been a pleasure and an honor to serve as the Executive Director of IMPACCT – an organization that has improved the lives of seniors, tenants and low-income New Yorkers for decades and will always be near and dear to me,” said Bernell Grier. “I look forward in continuing my personal passion and commitment to the support and make a difference in communities across New York City as I and the organization transition.”
“We applaud Bernell Grier’s undeniable experience and tenure with our organization and appreciate her tremendous drive and efforts that she championed throughout the years,” said Yvonne Cummings Board Chair of IMPACCCT Brooklyn. “We celebrate her distinguished career.”
This year, IMPACCT celebrates 60 years of service to families in Brooklyn. The organization is Diana Breen’s seventh Interim Executive Director/CEO position. Known as “The Transition Whisperer”, Ms. Breen (she/her) is a career Interim Executive Director/CEO and consults for organizations as their executives navigate their own transitions. She brings more than 20 years of management experience, a track record of winning seven-figure grants, strong finance and operations skills, and formal training and practice in Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) efforts as well as executive coaching. She is the founder of the Interim Leadership Network.
“I’m thrilled to join the IMPACCT Brooklyn team,” said Ms. Breen. “Their work to foster affordable housing and help Brooklyn residents thrive and access opportunity aligns deeply with my personal mission.”
IMPACCT Brooklyn’s Transition Committee, co-chaired by Board members Yvonne I. Cummings and Lisa N. Davis, guided the search for an Interim CEO. Board members John Dew, Patricia Rock, Lloyd Senior, Elizabeth Zeldin and Marlene Zurack also shared their expertise on the Transition Committee; McDermott & Bull conducted the search.
Ms. Grier has a 50-year distinguished career as an affordable housing and tenants’ rights advocate and former banking professional. Before joining IMPACCT Brooklyn in 2016, Ms. Grier served as Director and Vice President of the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York Affordable Housing Program, where she oversaw the project management, operations and roll-out of the $30 million grant program among FHLBNY members and project sponsors.
Under Ms. Grier’s leadership, IMPACCT renewed its commitment to developing and preserving affordable housing, preserving and developing over 1000 units. She successfully guided the organization through the pandemic assisting hundreds of households and small businesses with much needed resources.
IMPACCT Brooklyn embraces a vision in which people strive together to build an equitable, diverse, engaged and flourishing community in Central Brooklyn. As a community development corporation, IMPACCT Brooklyn’s mission is to preserve and develop safe, affordable housing; support a vibrant local commerce through which small businesses serve market needs of the community; and sustain and develop the fabric to enrich the lives of community residents economically, racially and culturally.
About IMPACCT Brooklyn
IMPACCT Brooklyn, formerly known as the Pratt Area Community Council, is a prominent community development corporation dedicated to assisting residents in building and sustaining flourishing communities in Brooklyn with a focus across Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Bedford Stuyvesant, Crown Heights, Prospect Heights, and Brownsville. Collaborating closely with community members, IMPACCT Brooklyn actively works towards preserving and developing affordable housing, revitalizing local businesses, fostering homeownership opportunities, safeguarding tenant rights, and preventing home loss.
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