Meet the Coaching and Mentoring Leadership Academy Participants

In January 2023, NYCHA launched its first-ever Coaching and Mentoring Leadership Academy (CMLA). Participants in the 16-week program are receiving training and coaching in areas such as strategic communications and crisis management, and they get the opportunity to enhance their leadership and management skills through mentorship. 

Over the next few weeks, we will profile some of the mentors and mentees participating in the Leadership Academy.   

Meet Assistant Property Manager Jessica Perez and Property Manager Vivian Sifontes 

Jessica Perez has been with NYCHA for 23 years. She joined the Authority through the Work Experience Program in 1998 as a secretary. She is currently an Assistant Property Manager at Whitman Houses. Ms. Perez has worked at various developments and in different departments over the past two decades. In 2018, she was promoted to Housing Assistant at Wilson Houses. Four years later, she became the Assistant Housing Manager at Marlboro Houses.  

Ms. Perez said she joined the CMLA to enhance her professional growth and personal development and to increase her confidence in public speaking. She is pleased with the results so far.  

“The Coaching and Mentoring Leadership Academy has been a great experience so far,” said Ms. Perez. “I was fortunate to have been matched up with a great mentor whom I feel comfortable with, and I truly appreciate Ms. Sifontes taking her time to share her knowledge and experience with me.”  

Vivian Sifontes is a Property Manager at Woodson Houses. Like her mentee, she also started her NYCHA career as a secretary in 1987 (in the Resident Review and Counselling office). She later worked as a Spanish interpreter for Applicant Appeals and then became a Housing Assistant for the Manhattan borough office, Baruch Houses, Smith Houses, and the Law Department. She has also served as an Assistant Manager at Gompers, Washington/Lexington, and Wald Houses and was a Manager at Wise Towers and Saint Nicholas Houses. 

Ms. Sifontes joined the CMLA because she wanted to make a difference and boost staff confidence about themselves, their jobs, and their role in decision-making.  

“I am happy that this program can provide guidance and, most importantly, build the confidence of our mentees,” said Ms. Sifontes. “When you know the work and you are confident, the job is easy. This program is a great tool, not only for the mentees but for the mentors as well. It takes you back to when you started through to how you got to where you are now. I had a lot of mentors in my day, and I appreciate every single one of them. I hope that I am bringing that confidence to my mentee.”