TRACEY SCOTT, Chief Executive Officer
Tracey Scott is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Chicago Housing Authority, the nation’s third largest Public Housing Authority which serves 64,000 Chicago families through its rental and homeownership programs. Since her appointment in 2020, Ms. Scott has ushered the agency into a new era of community-building with a focus on sustainable mixed-use, mixed-income models. Under her leadership, CHA is investing in rehabilitation of its inventory and creating new mixed-income developments, while expanding education and employment services to create more pathways for families to achieve economic power.
During Ms. Scott’s tenure, CHA has delivered nearly 2,000 new mixed-income units. As of 2023, an additional 1,800 units are in the development pipeline, representing one of the most active development periods in nearly two decades.
A leading voice in the affordable housing sector, Ms. Scott serves on the board of the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities, as President of the MTW Collaborative and as a member of the advisory board for the Stuart Handler Department of Real Estate at the University of Illinois. Before coming to CHA, Ms. Scott held leadership positions with the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority, Atlanta Housing, and AT&T, and served on several non-profit boards in the education, supportive housing and sustainability fields. Ms. Scott is a Daniel Burnham Fellow (Leadership Chicago) and Leadership Atlanta graduate and holds degrees from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and Emory University.
CHERYL BURNS, Chief Housing Choice Voucher Officer
Cheryl Burns serves as Chief Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Officer for the Chicago Housing Authority. Since ascending to that role in 2018, she has overseen the day-to-day management of the HCV program, which serves 47,000 participants and administers 1,165 Emergency Housing Vouchers (EHV’s). Over a more than 25-year career, Ms. Burns has held affordable housing leadership roles in small, medium and large Public Housing Authorities around the nation.
Ms. Burns is an Illinois native who holds a bachelor’s degree in Marketing from Columbia College in Chicago and a master’s degree in Communications and Training from Governors State University.
ANNA CHEN, Chief Information Officer
Anna Chen serves as the Chief Information Officer for the Chicago Housing Authority, a position she has held since 2023. Over nearly three decades, she has accumulated a wealth of professional expertise in the information technology field, including 18 years at CHA where she has served in roles of Technical Manager and Application Architect, Assistant Director of Information Technology Services, Director of Information Technology Services and Deputy Chief of Information Technology Services.
Ms. Chen holds a master’s in Engineering Management from Northwestern University.
DAN CRUZ, Chief of Staff
Dan Cruz is the Chief of Staff of the Chicago Housing Authority, a role he has held since 2021. He assists the Executive Office in overall agency operations and planning, focusing on intergovernmental affairs and community relations. Before joining CHA, Mr. Cruz ran his own public affairs consulting practice focusing on civil rights and philanthropic issues. Mr. Cruz’s background also includes senior public relations roles at Ligado Networks, the U.S. Treasury Department, General Services Administration and the Massachusetts state government.
Mr. Cruz received a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Northeastern University in Boston and was a University of Chicago Civic Leadership Academy Fellow.
ERIC GARRETT, Chief Operating Officer
Eric Garrett serves as the Chief Operating Officer for the Chicago Housing Authority, a position he assumed in 2023. Mr. Garrett oversees CHA’s Property and Asset Management division, as well as the agency’s quality assurance and sustainability efforts. In this role, Mr. Garrett is responsible for CHA’s ability to deliver safe and secure housing to its residents by maintaining the high quality of CHA’s housing stock. He has more than 25 years of property and asset management experience at the agency
Mr. Garrett is a U.S. Army veteran and holds degrees from Illinois School of Commerce, Maryland University, and City Colleges of Chicago. He’s also an all-around Chicago sports fan.
ELLEN HARRIS, Chief Legal Officer
Ellen M. Harris serves as Chief Legal Officer for the Chicago Housing Authority, a position she assumed in 2022. She has over 35 years of experience in real estate development, public housing, and municipal government. Before coming to CHA, Ms. Harris served as Chief Legal Officer for 12 years at the Newark Housing Authority (NHA), including a role as interim Executive Director. She also served as Assistant Corporation Counsel with the City of Newark, NJ for 13 years.
Ms. Harris received her undergraduate degree from Bucknell University and her J.D. from Seton Hall Law School. Her volunteer interests are youth mentoring and Habitat for Humanity initiatives.
MARY HOWARD, Chief Administrative and Resident Services Officer
Mary Howard serves as the Chief Administrative and Resident Services Officer for the Chicago Housing Authority. In this role, she oversees the agency’s Resident Services, Human Resources, Information Technology, and Procurement divisions. Since joining CHA in 2009, Ms. Howard has developed and strengthened programming to include evidence-based models with the goal of assisting residents to thrive, launched CHA’s nonprofit partner, Springboard 2 Success, and has created the Workforce Opportunity Resource Center (WORC) as well as redefined CHA’s diversity commitments in contracting.
Ms. Howard has more than 30 years of experience in the housing and nonprofit service industry. She is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor in Illinois and earned a Ph.D. in Organizational Psychology.
JENNIFER HOYLE, Deputy Chief of Staff
Jennifer Hoyle is the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Chicago Housing Authority. She manages the Strategy and Insights Division of the Executive Office, focusing on data analysis, strategic planning, and MTW compliance and reporting. Before joining CHA, Ms. Hoyle worked for the City of Chicago for more than 20 years in the Department of Law and Mayor’s Office focusing on strategic communications and long-term communication strategies on complex legal and policy issues as well as FOIA training and compliance.
Ms. Hoyle received a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is a lifelong Chicago resident.
ANN McKENZIE, Chief Development Officer
Ann McKenzie serves as Chief Development Officer for the Chicago Housing Authority, a role she has held since 2018. Since then, Ms. McKenzie has led the transition of more than 5,000 units using the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program, preservation of hundreds of CHA units, and development of an award-winning public library serving both CHA residents and their neighbors. During her more than 25 years of developing affordable housing, Ms. McKenzie has developed a mixed-use senior campus, preserved hundreds of affordable units, and spearheaded the adaptive reuse of buildings for residential use.
Ms. McKenzie earned her bachelor’s degree in Communications (with an Economics concentration) from Northwestern University and her J.D. from DePaul University Law.
MICHAEL MORAN, Chief Financial Officer
Michael Moran serves as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for the Chicago Housing Authority. Since joining CHA in 2012, he has overseen a department that has received both the Distinguished Presentation Award and the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for its Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for 25 consecutive years. He previously served as Deputy CFO and Director of Budgeting.
Mr. Moran has a bachelor’s degree in Accounting and a master’s degree in Finance from the University of Illinois at Chicago. He is an avid Chicago sports fan, having attended all 2005 White Sox playoff games.
KAREN VAUGHAN, Deputy Chief, Marketing and Communications
Karen Vaughan serves as CHA’s Deputy Chief for Communications and Marketing. With more than 20 years of experience in various City of Chicago and Cook County government agencies, she leads CHA’s Communications team, including graphics, digital, videography/photography and media relations staff. Since joining CHA in 2021, Ms. Vaughan has created new channels that effectively communicate with stakeholders, including residents, government leaders and media. She also leads the agency-wide Customer Service Experience initiative.
Ms. Vaughan earned her undergraduate degree in Communications from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and her master’s degree in Communication from DePaul University.