On Wednesday May 16
th, CREW Boston’s Public Strategies Committee hosted its annual Women in Government reception. Over 75 CREW members and invited guests gathered at the Union Club for the popular event. Energy ran high in the room as attendees networked before and after listening to the evening’s guest speaker Chrystal Kornegay, Executive Director of MassHousing. Chrystal was appointed in January 2018 to lead MassHousing, having previously served as the Baker-Polito Administration’s Undersecretary for Housing and Community Development. Prior to her government service, Chrystal was the President and Chief Executive Officer of Urban Edge, a non-profit community development corporation in Boston. Chrystal clearly has a passion for creating projects and programs that result in stronger communities for modest-income working families and brings to MassHousing a deep understanding of affordable housing finance and the nuances of resident-led community development. She described how her transition to government from the private sector required that she learn new processes and skills, but once she did, she knew she could succeed in her goals.
Chrystal gave a very inspiring speech highlighting how her life experiences have shaped her career. While growing up she questioned the limitations society placed on her
simply because she was a woman. Raising a son while working full-time left her with little choice but to charge ahead, creating her own opportunities and getting results. As the leader of MassHousing, she and her Agency require developers to work to achieve the organization’s goal of increasing affordable housing in Massachusetts as one of the major development objectives of each project. Chrystal challenged all of the attendees with a call-to-action: as we strive to continue bringing more and more women to the table, be certain that the same opportunities are provided to women of color so they may also participate and contribute. Chrystal is a true believer in paying it forward and never resting on past success.
CREW Boston would like to thank the sponsors of the Women in Government Reception: LDS Consulting Group, Massachusetts Development Finance Agency, National Development and Redgate.