The people behind the pink.

Researchers, community builders, fundraisers, and communicators — led by the conviction that the color of our shared spaces shapes our shared lives.

PS

Priya Subramanian

Executive Director

MPA, the Wagner School. Former deputy commissioner, NYC Dept. of Cultural Affairs. Former program officer, Aldrich Foundation. Under her leadership the Society has tripled its budget, grown from 11 to 34 staff, launched Color Works, and published The Pink Paper. Lives in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. “Nobody ever changed a neighborhood with a literature review.”

TA

Dr. Tomás Arriaga

Director of Research

PhD, Environmental Psychology, City University Graduate Center. Leads the Chromatic Research Lab. Oversees all research partnerships, the Annual Chromatic Survey, and the Willard Fellowship. Principal investigator on the Central Park Pathways Study. Lead author of The Pink Paper. Previously faculty at the Gramercy School of Design.

KW

Kezia Washington

Director, Color Works

BA, Urban Studies, Morningside College. Grew up in Brooklyn, where she remembers the 1991 Chromatic Intervention Pilot as a kid. Has run Color Works since its founding in 2014. Manages community partnerships, project selection, staffing, and the artist residency program. Employs 8 full-time and 40–60 seasonal staff.

DP

David Yoon Park

Director of Development

Previously major gifts officer at the Greenway. Responsible for all fundraising: foundation relations, individual major gifts, corporate partnerships, events, and the Central Park Pathways capital campaign.

SA

Simone Alcántara

Director of Communications

Former digital director at the NYC Design Alliance. Manages brand, media, digital presence, and social channels. Designed the Society’s 2019 rebrand — the pink bar was her idea. The board debated it for three months.

GF

George Ferris

CFO / Director of Operations

CPA. Previously controller at NYC Parks Alliance. Manages finance, HR, IT, office operations, and compliance. The person who makes sure the visionaries can actually do their jobs.

Board of Directors

22 members drawn from architecture, urban planning, public health, law, real estate, finance, and the arts.

Adaora Okafor-Mills

Chair

Partner, Alcott & Crane. Art collector. Expertise in public-private partnerships.

Dr. James Kwon

Vice Chair

Professor of Architectural Colorimetry, Kessler School of Design. Developed measurement protocols for the Brooklyn Housing Study.

Elena Marchetti

Treasurer

CFO, Greystone Properties. Real estate development perspective.

Cynthia Two Horses

Secretary

Executive Director, CityWide Schools Initiative. Education policy perspective.

Dr. Marcus Adeyemi

Emeritus

Former ED and architect of the modern Society. Led the Brooklyn Housing Study. 87 years old. Attends every meeting. Still corrects people’s pronunciation of “chromatic.”

Solange Reyes

Member

Senior VP, Hartwell Paints. Corporate partnership anchor. Co-funds the Willard Fellowship.

Robert Chen-Watkins

Capital Campaign Chair

Managing Director, Whitmore Capital. Major individual donor.

Fatima Al-Rashid

Ex Officio

Deputy Commissioner, NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Government liaison.

Amara Osei

Member

President, Prospect Gardens Tenants Association. Brings neighborhood perspective to every project decision.

Philip Gould

Member

Retired. Former president, Fine Arts Federation. Institutional memory and civic network connector.

Dr. Samira Hussain

Member

Dept. of Environmental Medicine, Breitman Institute. Research partnership steward.

Trevor Whitfield-Patel

Member

Founder, Whitfield-Patel Design Studio. Age 31. Design-world credibility. Pro bono rebrand in 2019.

Joan Castellano

Member

Program Director, New York Civic Foundation. Foundation perspective. Recuses on grantmaking votes.

Martin O’Brien

Member

President, Building Engineers Local 412. Organized labor interests. Connected Society to building maintenance workers.

Grace Liu

Member

Director, National Design Museum education programs. Museum partnership anchor.

Rev. Dr. Alvin Chambers

Member

Senior Pastor, Emmanuel Baptist Church, Clinton Hill. Faith and civic leader.

34 full-time. 12 part-time. ~200 volunteers.

The Society employs 34 full-time staff across six departments, plus 12 part-time and 40–60 seasonal employees during Color Works projects. Our volunteer network of approximately 200 active New Yorkers supports the Annual Chromatic Survey, Color Works painting days, and public programs.

Executive / Admin: 4 FT, 1 PT
Research (Chromatic Lab): 6 FT, 3 PT
Color Works (Community Programs): 8 FT, 40–60 seasonal
Development / Fundraising: 5 FT, 1 PT
Communications / Digital: 4 FT, 2 PT
Archive & Education: 3 FT, 2 PT
Finance & Operations: 4 FT, 1 PT

Join us.

We’re always looking for researchers, community builders, and people who believe color matters.

This is a fictional nonprofit.

The New York Chromatic Society is a fictional nonprofit used as a teaching aid in the How to Raise Money fundraising workshop.