NMA trainers Gail Gillispie, Ray Adair, and Nan McKay at The Housing Conference last year

Have you ever thought that you'd make a great NMA trainer? Now's your chance to show us what you've got! Next month we'll be holding open auditions via Skype for new Nan McKay trainers.

2016 Skype Auditions for NMA Contract Trainers

Thursday, April 28 and Friday, April 29

• Must have a Skype account to participate
• Download and complete this questionnaire
• Email marketing@nanmckay.com with your resume and the completed questionnaire
• If you are selected as a potential candidate, we'll contact you to set up an audition

Email us to get started!

NMA trainer Adam Ensalaco will be leading a session on rent calculation at this year's NMA Housing Conference

Our interview series continues today with NMA trainer Adam Ensalaco. Say hi to him this October at the 2015 NMA and GoSection8 Housing Conference!

Tell us about your work experience.

Immediately before signing on with Nan McKay, I was working at Access Living, which is a center for independent living in Chicago, focused on serving people with disabilities. At Access Living I was a housing coordinator for the (now-defunct) Homelessness Prevention/Rapid Re-Housing Program. My job there was to work with families and individuals to get current on back rents, or, failing that, to assist them in finding new homes with very little time and even fewer resources. It was the very picture of a challenging but extremely rewarding experience.

How did you get your start in the industry?

Prior to my job at Access Living, I had worked on a campaign to raise awareness of lead paint poisoning in Chicago. This was an initiative through Loyola University’s school of law. It may seem odd that a law school would care about lead paint, but the reality is that lead paint exposure leads to damage to the areas of the brain responsible for impulse control and is strongly associated with juvenile criminality. After the grant that funded my position ended, I moved to Access Living.

How many years have you been at NMA? How many years in the industry?

I began at NMA just under three years ago. I would say I began in the industry with my position at Loyola in 2008.

Education credentials?

My B.A. is in international studies/human rights studies from the University of Dayton (GO Flyers!).

What’s one topic you’re most passionate about in the affordable housing industry?

I am very passionate about the rights of people with disabilities. There is a much larger percentage of people with disabilities in low-income housing than in American society in general; I think the last time I looked it was something like 30 percent of subsidized housing participants vs. around 10 percent of the general public. That’s a wide gap. As a result, I am especially careful when training housing authorities on reasonable accommodations because it’s just so important for building strong relationships between PHAs and the communities they serve.

What's your favorite part about your job?

I love teaching people things. I always have.

Describe your typical workday?

I’m a trainer for NMA; I don’t have typical work days.

Tell us about a successful project that you had a part in.

At Access Living I played a part in helping the Chicago Housing Authority lease up about 100 Non-Elderly Disabled vouchers in a very short period of time. I think it was around three months. As anyone can tell you, that’s no mean feat, even for a trained housing specialist, working as I was at an agency that had always been on the outside looking in and suddenly having to learn and apply HUD and CHA rules was quite the challenge. I know that at least ten or twenty of those families were homeless when they leased up. There’s nothing more gratifying than that.

Are you affiliated with any outside organizations?

I have in the past worked for Greenpeace, MoveOn.org, and the DNC. I remain active with those organizations.

Hobbies outside of work?

I listen to a lot of rock and roll, and I am trying to whittle away at the giant stack of books I keep promising myself I’m going to read someday.

Meet NMA trainer Adam Ensalaco at the 2015 NMA and GoSection8 Housing Conference this October! Limited free one-hour consulting sessions will be available to conference participants on a first-come, first-served basis starting next week. Must be registered to sign up for a session. Register online or email sales@nanmckay.com for more information.

Effective Monday, June 15, the new address of our main corporate office in San Diego will be 1810 Gillespie Way, Suite 202, El Cajon, CA 92020. All our other contact information, including phone numbers and email addresses, will remain the same. Only our street address is changing.

The NMA office will close at 2 p.m. Pacific time this Friday, June 12 so we can finish moving our boxes. If you attempt to reach us and experience a problem getting through, please try again on the morning of Monday, June 15. We'll be back up and running then.

NMA trainers Becky Gligo, Samantha Sowards, and Sammie Szabo at last year's NMA Housing Conference

Have you ever thought that you'd make a great NMA trainer? Now's your chance to show us what you've got! Next month we'll be holding open auditions via Skype for new contract trainers.

2015 NMA Open Auditions

Thursday, April 30 and Friday, May 1

• Must have a Skype account to participate
• Download and complete this questionnaire
• Email marketing@nanmckay.com with your resume and the completed questionnaire
• If you are selected as a potential candidate, we'll contact you to set up an audition time

Email us to get started!

The NAHRO 2014 National Conference starts this Thursday, and several key members of the NMA management team will be there:

John McKay, Chief Executive Officer. John McKay has been with NMA since 1998, and has served as CEO of the company since 2007. Prior to this, he was vice president of operations, creating the new consulting and technology services departments. This initiative introduced the first fully functional NMA Performance Portal to the affordable housing market. John brings his knowledge of housing regulations and industry best practices into his role as project executive on many of NMA’s contracts with large housing authority clients and HUD. He has assessed, analyzed, and provided feedback to some of the country’s most well-run private and public organizations.

Dorian Jenkins, Vice President, Program Management. Dorian Jenkins is a dynamic and energetic leader with two decades of low-income housing experience. As vice president of program management, he heads the NMA teams at both the Chicago Housing Authority and Miami-Dade Public Housing and Community Development. His teams focus on consistently meeting and exceeding performance goals while providing high-quality services to both agencies and their stakeholders.

Carrol Vaughan, Vice President, Professional Services. With over 30 years of experience in the affordable housing industry, vice president of professional services Carrol Vaughan ensures that Nan McKay and Associates continues to provide the highest quality support to the nation’s housing agencies. Prior to joining NMA, Carrol served as executive vice president and COO with the San Diego Housing Commission, where she was responsible for all housing programs, real estate development, workforce and economic initiatives, housing finance, and homeownership programs, as well as operation functions, organizational development and training, and information technology.

Andrew Denicola, Sales and Business Development Manager. Andrew Denicola has ten years of broad experience, including efficiency consulting, document and records management, and quality control and program integrity. Since joining NMA, his work has included extensive file reviews, admin plan and ACOP consulting, setting up and helping run QC departments, evaluating policies and procedures, assessing departments and agencies, and developing recommendation plans. Andrew’s background includes experience in the public housing program, HCV program, and Disaster Housing Assistance Program (DHAP).

Jason Lee, Derrick Ratliff, and Edward Adams will also be attending from the NMA sales department. Stop by and say hi at booth #1117!

Last week NMA accepted the ALS ice bucket challenge from GoSection8 and PHA Technology Professionals!

Top row, left to right: James Misner, Kathleen Walters, Natasha Anderson, Samantha Pratter.

Bottom row, left to right: Chad Coalier, Ashley Braun, Jason Lee, Tara McNamara.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_NNUVlOOoM?rel=0]

In other news:

New York Times (via Planetizen): Evictions soar in hot market; renters suffer

NHC: "Poor door" discussion misplaces outrage, masks solutions

NMA regional account manager James Misner will be attending this year's NMA Housing Conference

Our interview series continues today with James Misner, NMA regional account manager for the northern United States. Say hi to him this August at the NMA and GoSection8 Housing Conference!

Tell us about your work experience and how you got your start in the affordable housing industry.

Real estate, mortgage, and banking. I got my start in the industry here at NMA, starting March 3, 2014.

Education credentials?

I have an A.A. in humanities and a B.A. in finance.

What’s one topic you’re most passionate about in the affordable housing industry?

Helping housing authorities be able to do "a lot more with a lot less."

What's your favorite part about your job?

Talking with people and figuring out solutions and different ways of doing things.

Describe your typical workday?

Never really a typical one, and that's the best part. I never get bored, because it's never really the same day twice.

Tell us about a successful project that you had a part in.

Well, I can't say it's a success yet, but it's starting to gain speed.  I'd have to say my regionalization of training hubs throughout my territory, and conducting regular quarterly trainings. I'm currently working with agencies in North Dakota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Utah, and Kansas, and beginning talks with agencies in Nebraska, Montana, and Minnesota.

Are you affiliated with any outside organizations?

Indirectly, I'm affiliated with GLOW (Grand Ladies of the Old West). My wife is a past president of this nonprofit group that raises funds for local battered women's houses.

Hobbies outside of work?

Pool (billiards), poker, golf, tennis, astronomy, and motorcycles — I'm getting mine fixed by August!

Meet NMA regional account manager James Misner at the 2014 NMA and GoSection8 Housing Conference this August! Limited free one-hour consulting sessions will be available to conference participants on a first-come, first-served basis starting next week. Must be registered to sign up for a session. Register online or email sales@nanmckay.com for more information.

NMA regional account manager Derrick Ratliff will be attending this year's NMA Housing Conference

Today in our “Meet the Team” interview series we're talking to Derrick Ratliff, NMA regional account manager for the southern United States. Say hi to him this August at the NMA and GoSection8 Housing Conference!

Tell us about your work experience and how you got your start in the affordable housing industry.

I've worked in the public housing industry for 15 years, starting in late 1999 as a contract housing inspector with the first company awarded an inspections contract with the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) and then in various management capacities with the CHA's housing choice voucher program. While I was at CHA, I developed and successfully launched CHA's Owner Excellence Program (OEP), a groundbreaking program to recognize and reward property owners and/or property managers for their excellent property management skills.

Education credentials?

Sergeant, United States Marine Corps (Operation Desert Storm veteran). I'm also HQS- and UPCS-certified.

What’s one topic you’re most passionate about in the affordable housing industry?

There are many that come to mind, but I'd have to say that the topic I'm most passionate about is drilling down to ways NMA can assist agencies and provide them with the necessary tools to improve the lives of the families they serve.

What's your favorite part about your job?

Talking to and meeting agency decision-making staff across the country and tailoring NMA's housing expertise to their training and consulting needs. Basically, nurturing current partnerships and creating new ones.

Describe your typical workday?

A typical day for me begins at 6:30 a.m. I'm at my desk by 7 a.m. reading emails. I usually have my day's game plan finalized by 8 a.m. Calling potential clients, responding to emails and voicemails, following up on all clients' needs, drafting proposals, updating Salesforce tracking, etc. It's never a dull moment when you're doing something you love.

Tell us about a successful project that you had a part in.

Winning the inspections contract with Miami Beach Housing Authority.

Are you affiliated with any outside organizations?

I'm a member of Toastmasters International and Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).

Hobbies outside of work?

Bowling, rollerskating, and spending as much time as I can with my two children and family.

Meet NMA regional account manager Derrick Ratliff at the 2014 NMA and GoSection8 Housing Conference this August! Limited free one-hour consulting sessions will be available to conference participants on a first-come, first-served basis starting July 14. Must be registered to sign up for a session. Register online or email sales@nanmckay.com for more information.

NMA regional account manager Edward Adams will be attending this year's NMA Housing Conference

Up next in our “Meet the Team” interview series is Edward Adams, NMA regional account manager for the western United States. Say hi to him this August at the NMA and GoSection8 Housing Conference!

Tell us about your work experience and how you got your start in the affordable housing industry.

Before got involved with affordable housing, I was the Northern California administrator of facility management services for Blue Shield of California, where I was responsible for the construction of new facilities as well as expanding, rehabilitating, and administering existing properties. In this position I directed a staff of architectural designers, coordinators, and contractors, and approved all phases of property improvement, including design, materials, space planning, leases, and contracts.

Just as my career at Blue Shield was ending, I visited a friend in Ventura, CA. The second day I was there I saw an ad in the local newspaper for the director of facilities management for the Area Housing Authority (AHA). Soon after, I underwent the interviewing process and they hired me. That was my first venture into the public sector and I saw things through a much different lens than when working for a large corporation.

Later, as AHA's chief operations officer, I used the NMA model to create the housing authority's agency plan, and that was the beginning of my association with NMA — many times I called Nan directly with questions, and always received the correct answers. This was also when I began to participate in various community and local governmental affairs activities.

After I left the AHA, I worked in Iraq as a master planner for an engineering and construction group (I'd served in the U.S. Army several years prior). This was quite interesting in as much as I was still involved in housing, but it was housing for troops and contractors and included establishing and maintaining effective garrison and transportation support for all branches of the military stationed in Iraq. I was one of the few professional staff members who wasn't an engineer, and my job was to scrutinize and analyze requests for projects, write report scenarios, and make presentations to senior military staff at the Baghdad headquarters. My housing authority experience with making the most of limited funding was tremendously helpful in this position. As I think about Iraq, it's sad to see what's happening there now.

When I came back from Iraq, I decided that I wanted to return to the affordable housing industry. I became the housing management division administrator for the city of Tucson, where I worked to implement division strategic plans and work activities to coordinate and synchronize with the housing and community development department's directions and goals. After five years in the position, I thought it might be time to "retire," but decided to change directions again. Since I had high regard for NMA, I contacted Carrol Vaughan and she directed me to John McKay and Andrew Denicola, who offered to bring me on board.

How many years have you been at NMA? How many years in the industry?

I've been with NMA for almost 18 months, although it seems much longer. I've been in the industry for a total of about 20 years.

Education credentials?

I received my B.A. in American studies and English at Youngstown State University and a master of public administration degree at California State University, Northridge. I also hold a certificate in environmental land use and planning from the University of California, Santa Barbara. My other certifications include:

• Facilities Management Administrator, Building Owners and Managers Institute (BOMI)
• Public Housing Manager, National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO)
• Manager of Maintenance, National Center for Housing Management (NCHM)
• Section 8 Management Certification (Nan McKay and Associates)
• Low Income Housing Tax Credit Property Management Certification (Novogradic and Company)

What’s one topic you’re most passionate about in the affordable housing industry?

I don't know if I would consider any topic as being my most passionate, taking into account all the things involved in our industry. But knowing that I'm part of assisting families to find affordable housing is very satisfying. I spent my middle school and high school years living on a farm, but my father lost the farm when I was entering my senior year. We moved into a rural public housing complex which was a godsend for the family. Therefore, I am quite well acquainted with the housing needs of low-income families and what government-assisted programs can provide. The situation many families find themselves in today is even worse than it was for us.

What's your favorite part about your job?

Ensuring that our clients get what they need, and assisting them through the decision-making process.

Tell us about a successful project that you had a part in.

I was involved with a community housing development organization (CHDO) that took an old motel and turned it into a great housing development for persons with special needs. It wasn't an easy process, especially layering the funding and getting the public to accept having  it in their "back yard," but we made it work to everyone's satisfaction.

Are you affiliated with any outside organizations?

Although I have no present affiliations, I've been involved with the following:

• Volunteer with a CHDO dedicated to serving persons with disabilities
• Serving on the staff of a federal Section 811 affordable independent living community for persons with mental disabilities
• Serving on the staff of a nonprofit low-income housing tax credit property owner
• Serving on a county workforce investment board youth council
• Serving on a county community development council

Hobbies outside of work?

I enjoy the great outdoors and hunting, having been brought up in a family and region of the country where hunting is commonplace. There's presently no time for getting out as much as I'd like because of work and other responsibilities, but occasionally camping and just relaxing outdoors is fine. I'm also a supporter of and frequent visitor to my local YMCA; working out is a great stress reliever! And I also support several environmental conservation groups not related to hunting — I believe that as a society we should preserve what we have and try to reverse the damage we've done, and continue to do, to our planet.

NMA regional account manager Edward Adams will be attending the 2014 NMA and GoSection8 Housing Conference. Register online or email sales@nanmckay.com for more information. Winners of the 2014 NMA Housing Awards will be announced at the conference — have you submitted your entries yet?

Our interview series continues today with project manager Ashela O'Connor, who began her career with NMA in our Chicago office and later transitioned to the San Diego office, where she currently enjoys much warmer winters.

How did you get your start in the affordable housing industry?

My first job in the industry was serving as the executive assistant to NMA's VP of program management, Dorian Jenkins.

Education credentials?

I received my bachelor of arts degree in psychology at Purdue University (BOILER UP!) and a master of arts in sociology at DePaul University. I'm currently working on my juris doctor at California Western School of Law.

What’s one topic you’re most passionate about in the affordable housing industry?

Fair housing.

What's your favorite part about your job?

Variety—there's always something new to tackle.

Describe your typical work day?

The only thing typical about my work day is that it's never typical! There are always different projects to work on and new agencies to assist.

Tell us about a successful project that you had a part in.

In a recent file review project, NMA purged approximately 6,800 files, overseeing the process to ensure that each participant file included required information and documents. We also established file management procedures for the client PHA, including bar coding, developing written procedures and performance specifications, and conducting training of PHA staff on the new file management procedures.

Are you affiliated with any outside organizations?

I volunteer with Jambalangels of San Diego, an organization that prepares jambalaya once a week for local charities, cancer patients, HIV patients, and the homeless in San Diego.

Hobbies outside of work?

What are hobbies? Between work, law school, and planning a wedding, I've forgotten all about hobbies!

NMA project manager Ashela O'Connor has extensive research experience in a variety of fields, including in-depth project development and analysis, and applies that knowledge to her oversight of NMA's high-priority projects. Responsible for all aspects of each project through completion, Ashela has been instrumental in the development of NMA's policies and procedures in the housing choice voucher program.