LITTLE ROCK — The interim executive director of the city’s public housing authority will be the official executive director as of April 5.
Nadine Jarmon, who has been in the interim position since July 2020, was hired on a two-year contract. Jarmon was previously executive director of the Deerfield Beach Housing and Redevelopment Authority in Florida.
She will be paid $166,000 per year, according to the contract.
Metropolitan Housing Authority Board of Commissioners Chairman Kenyon Lowe said the board had “several good candidates” to choose from but “felt Dr. Jarmon’s skill set and background best suited the agency.” The board chose her from a pool of 35 candidates.
Jarmon said in a Thursday phone interview that she has observed a divide within housing authority leadership and hopes to mend it.
“It seemed to me that in most cases it was the staff and executive director against the board,” she said. “One of the first things I want to accomplish is: there’s no us, we, I or me. We’re a team. It hasn’t been easy, but I want to make sure we build a solid team. And I think I’ve done a lot of that in the seven months I’ve been here.”
She recently hired a team of staff members she said she is proud to work with, including deputy director Sherrill Hampton, finance director Andy Delaney and housing choice voucher director Constance Johnson.
Jarmon also said she wants the housing authority’s nonprofit organization, the Central Arkansas Housing Corp., to do more development work in Little Rock in partnership with the housing authority.
“My vision is to see a very well-oiled and comprehensive relationship with all of our partners, including the city,” she said.
The Metropolitan Housing Authority oversees about 900 traditional public housing units, 200 affordable housing units and 160 market-rate units. It also administers more than 2,000 Section 8 vouchers. It provides housing assistance to about 8,000 people.
The board previously selected Jarmon for the position in 2019, but she withdrew from the post before she started. Anthony Snell subsequently became executive director and left the position in July 2020 after less than a year.
Jarmon, who is from Conway, earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Central Arkansas, a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Houston, and a master’s degree in public administration and a doctorate in urban and public affairs from the University of Texas.
She has worked as a contracting consultant, a monitor and board adviser for the Gary Housing Authority in Indiana, the executive director of the Louisiana Land Trust and the executive director of the Housing Authority of New Orleans.
She also led the Deerfield Beach Housing and Redevelopment Authority through two conversions of public housing to Section 8 through the federal Rental Assistance Demonstration program, which allows public agencies to privatize day-to-day operations of public housing facilities and partner with private companies to revitalize aging housing.