NEW YORK—A second Haitian American has joined the ranks of Mayor Eric Adams’ prime leaders with the latest appointment of Johnny Celestin, a long-time neighborhood chief, as govt director of the Mayor’s Workplace of Nonprofit Companies.
With the appointment, Celestin joins Jacques Jiha, town’s price range director, as a high-profile Haitian American in Adams’ administration. He’s tasked with making certain that town’s nonprofits are paid, a perennial situation that many social providers organizations have been elevating for practically 4 years, amongst different objectives.
“Johnny will play an important position in making certain our nonprofit companions work alongside us to strengthen our techniques and have the assist they should thrive whereas delivering important providers to New Yorkers,” First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright mentioned within the June announcement. “His management for this workplace will additional strengthen our metropolis’s capability to serve all communities and advance fairness throughout New York Metropolis.”
Neighborhood members welcomed the information of one other Haitian New Yorker rising in metropolis management, whereas sounding a cautiously optimistic word.
Gina Faustin, an entrepreneur who often consults nonprofits, mentioned she hopes Celestin receives assist to achieve the brand new position.
“Johnny’s very good, however he’s inheriting a multitude – similar to Conille is inheriting in Haiti,” Faustin mentioned. “Johnny has his work reduce out for him. I want that he will get a number of assist, however with 1,800 nonprofits that haven’t gotten paid in [years], he’s inherited a giant chaos and mess.
“Bon braveness,” she added, Creole for “good luck.”
The Mayor’s Workplace of Nonprofit Companies goals to supply important data to nonprofits and develop and ship capacity-building applications to assist nonprofits to contract with town extra simply. Crucially, it’s also tasked with coordinating actions to advance the suggestions of the Joint Task Force to Get Nonprofits Paid on Time. It’s half of a bigger effort to clear a backlog of metropolis contracts which have left hundreds of distributors unpaid for months, generally years, and a new reform for discretionary contracts that makes it simpler for nonprofits that contract with town to receives a commission on time.
Celestin has labored within the personal, public, philanthropic, and nonprofit sectors. Earlier than this position, he served on the New York Metropolis Mayor’s Workplace of Minority- and Ladies-Owned Enterprise Enterprises (M/WBEs) as deputy director, the place he developed insurance policies to broaden M/WBE alternatives and spearheaded strategic planning to streamline the supply of providers. Prior, he labored throughout the nonprofit sector, together with on the Robin Hood Basis, Atlantic Philanthropies, Haitian Middle for Management and Excellence, Haitian Fund for Innovation and Reconstruction, and the Clinton Basis.
Celestin earned a Bachelor of Science diploma in Enterprise Administration at Iona College and a grasp’s diploma in Worldwide Affairs on the New Faculty College.
“I applaud the Adams administration for choosing an impressive selection in appointing Johnny Celestin as the chief director of the Mayor’s Workplace of Nonprofit Companies,” mentioned New York Metropolis Councilmember Rita Joseph, a Haitian American official whose central Brooklyn district included a big Haitian constituency.
“Johnny’s experience and dedication can be instrumental in bettering communication with nonprofits, streamlining contracting processes, and making certain well timed funds,” she mentioned. “His management is a big win for our metropolis and the important work nonprofits do in our communities.”