The Massachusetts Association of
Community Development Corporations

Joe Kriesberg is the President and CEO of MACDC.  He first joined MACDC in 1993 as Vice President and served in that capacity until he became President in July 2002.  He is responsible for all aspects of the agency's operations, including its advocacy work with public and private sector entities, its capacity building work with members, and all internal operations. He has launched several innovative new programs at MACDC, including the Mel King Institute for Community Building, the GOALs Initiative, the biennial MACDC conventions and the Community Development Innovation Forum – a collaborative process to identify and implement strategies to help the field adapt to the changing context for its work. During his tenure Joe has led the association's legislative advocacy work. He has helped to pass many important bills through the Massachusetts Legislature, including the groundbreaking Insurance Industry Community Investment Act (1998,) the Affordable Housing Trust Fund (2000,) the Small Business Technical Assistance Program (2006) and most recently a comprehensive anti-foreclosure law (2007).  

Prior to working for MACDC, Mr. Kriesberg worked for eight years on energy and environmental issues for non profit organizations in Washington, DC and Boston, MA. Mr. Kriesberg has a B.A. from Binghamton University (New York State) and a J.D. Degree from Northeastern University in Boston. He is a member of the Massachusetts Bar.

He lives in Boston, MA, with his wife, Dina Brownstein, and their two children, Joshua and Michael.

Shirronda Almeida, Director of Membership Initiatives, assists CDCs in improving their capacity as community resources and serves on MACDC’s management team.  She manages the Alliance – Advancing Community Development by Confronting Racism, the Community Development Mentoring Program and recently spearheaded the launch of The Mel King Institute for Community Building in May, 2009.

Before working at MACDC, Shirronda worked on various local and statewide youth development, organizing, prevention and public art programs.  She holds a Master's degree in Education from Harvard Graduate School of Education where she focused on adolescent Risk and Prevention and social change.  She received her B.A. from Simmons College in International Relations and minored in Spanish. 

Shirronda also enjoys traveling, dancing, practicing yoga and reading.

Pam Bender, Senior Organizer, engages MACDC members in advocacy work and provides support and capacity building to CDC organizers.

Pam has over 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector, with a focus on community organizing, leadership development and organizational development.  Prior to working at MACDC she worked at Management Consulting Services, Neighborhood Reinvestment Corp and the Massachusetts Tenants Organization.

Pam is very active in Jamaica Plain where she lives with her long-time partner.

Don Bianchi is the Senior Policy Advocate at the Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations.  Don promotes MACDC’s public policy agenda, fosters working relationships among the public, private and nonprofit sectors, and assists CDCs in building capacity. 

Prior to working at MACDC, Don served as Hilltown CDC’s Housing Director for over 8 years, where he led the CDC’s initial foray into housing development and successfully developed affordable rental and ownership housing for families and seniors.  Don holds a master’s degree in urban and environmental policy from Tufts University.  He has over 25 years experience in affordable housing development, lending and policy.

Don lives in Northampton with his wife and daughter.

Allison M. Staton is the Director of Advocacy at MACDC.  She is responsible for leading MACDC’s legislative work in the State House, enhancing external communications and serves on the management team.

Before joining MACDC, she worked at The Women’s Union (now Crittenton Women’s Union) and Health Care For All.  Prior to her advocacy work, Allison taught elementary school in New Orleans through Teach For America.  She has her B.A. from Skidmore College and an M.S. from the Harvard School of Public Health. 

She lives in Dedham with her husband, twin sons and daughter.

Teresa Walker, Office Manager of MACDC and is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the office. Prior to working at MACDC, she worked at the Office of Campaign and Political Finance, the Community Minority Cultural Center (CMCC) and the Union Street Corridor Community Development Corporation.

Teresa lives in Lynn with her husband Dozzie and her daughters Donna and Taima.

Rosa Nin is the office assistant at MACDC. Before joining MACDC, Rosa worked at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. She graduated from Fenway Pilot High School in 2005 and is currently a sophomore at the University of Massachusetts Boston.

Rosa is a long time resident of Jamaica Plain and lives there with her family.

Jay Rosa is the Program Coordinator at MACDC. He assists in program development and promotion for MACDC’s Mel King Institute for Community Building. Prior to MACDC, he worked to improve affordable student housing in Boston and assisted with public administration for the town of Plymouth, MA.

Jay received his Bachelor’s Degree from Northeastern.

Jay enjoys snowboarding and the Boston Celtics.