National Housing Law Project Housing Law Bulletin

Effective December 1, 1996, I will be leaving my position as Director of the Project and will begin working with the Board of Directors on issues of fundraising and board restructuring.

David Bryson will become Interim Director and all other staffing will remain the same.

My decision to resign as director at this time is compelled by family and health reasons. As many of you know, I have been commuting to the Bay Area from Woodland (a two-hour commute each way) for over six years and it finally has taken its toll.

I am grateful to the Board and staff of the Project for the support and confidence they have displayed in my leadership, particularly during the past 18 months, when as an institution we have had to face enormous challenges … challenges caused by the hostile political climate created by the 1994 elections … a climate that targeted the most vulnerable in our society, particularly the poor and disenfranchised. And, while the 1996 elections hopefully indicate a shift in direction toward a more moderate and compassionate climate, the struggle to preserve the expertise and national advocacy of the Project and other national support centers will remain a challenge for the foreseeable future.

Yet I leave knowing that the extraordinarily talented and deeply dedicated staff, with David Bryson’s leadership and the Board’s support, will continue the difficult but necessary struggle to preserve the Project as a national progressive voice on behalf of the housing needs of poor people … a role it has proudly served for over 28 years.

I also want to thank our funders, and the support, both moral and financial, that so many of our friends in the legal services and housing advocacy community have provided in our time of need. I look forward to working with all of you in my new capacity with the Board.

Sincerely,
Manuel A. Romero