Joseph Adams

Joseph K. Adams Sr. was appointed to the NYCHA Board in June 2019 by Mayor Bill de Blasio. A NYCHA resident for over 20 years, Mr. Adams currently resides at Manhattan’s Sondra Thomas Apartments. He is a former resident of Manhattan’s Woodrow Wilson Houses and the Bronx’s Patterson Houses.

Mr. Adams’ extensive experience in advocating on behalf of the community is reflected by the jobs he’s held and his volunteer work over the past few decades. He is a member of New York Communities for Change, was the Vice President of John Jay College’s Able Forces Club (which advocates for students with disabilities), and served for many years as a Union Shop Steward and Grievance Representative at the Teamsters Local 237 union. A School Safety Agent for over 15 years, he later worked at his alma mater, CUNY’s John Jay College of Criminal Justice, as a Research Assistant for a professor in the Department of Africana Studies and as a Research Coordinator in the Women’s Center’s Department of Counseling.

While overcoming a learning disability, Mr. Adams obtained his High School Equivalency Diploma. He later earned his bachelor’s degree and Master of Public Administration degree from John Jay College. Mr. Adams received certification in public advocacy and leadership from the Joint Public Affairs Committee’s Institute for Senior Action.

He raised four of his six children as a single parent, and was proud to see them graduate from elite high schools and universities, including Harvard University and the University of Chicago.