Gregory D. Johnson, MS, PHM, EDEP is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority. Selected by the CMHA Board of Commissioners for his leadership and strategic skills, Mr. Johnson will continue to build upon the agency’s high performer status and prepare the organization for a bright future.
He joined CMHA from the Dayton Premier Management, where he accumulated 16 years of housing industry experience in a number of roles before being named CEO. During his tenure as CEO, Johnson sought creative educational opportunities to foster his impact on the dynamic growing environment of the housing industry.
Seeking creative solutions within the housing industry is a lifelong mission for Mr. Johnson, who was himself raised in a single-parent household in one of Dayton’s subsidized housing communities. It was his deep, personal understanding of the struggles these everyday people face that led him to a career in which he could empower individuals, foster a sense of community and provide access to the same positive opportunities that impacted his own life.
To that end, Mr. Johnson has worked with dedication and compassion to become a strong advocate, life coach and role model for young adults. Through his volunteer work in the community, he has shared his life story and shown through his example that a sense of personal and social responsibility, compassion, integrity and humility are critical to achieving life success.
Mr. Johnson’s unwavering commitment to the community is one of the reasons he has been so often recognized by his peers and associates. He has received several community and industry recognition awards from the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO), the Greater Dayton African American Chamber of Commerce and the Dayton Chamber of Commerce.
Mr. Johnson is also recognized as a leader within the housing industry. In addition to earning a B.A. from Tiffin University and a Master’s Degree from Quinnipiac University, he also holds several industry certifications, including:
- Executive Leadership – Harvard Kennedy School in Boston
- Leading Organizational Change – Wharton in Philadelphia
- Graduate of the Executive Directors Program – Rutgers University
- Executive Management completion – NAHRO
- Public Housing Management – Nan McKay and Associates
- Six Sigma Green Belt in problem solving – Villanova University.
Mr. Johnson has also been called upon as an industry expert. In 2006, he wrote and presented a brief before the House Government Reform Subcommittee on Federalism and the Census (“Public Housing Management: Do the Public Housing Authorities have the flexibility they need to meet the changing demands of the 21st Century?”). He has also given numerous presentations to industry groups such as the National Association of Housing Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Ohio Housing Authorities Conference (OHAC). Finally Mr. Johnson has participated as part of a CEO roundtable on minority owned business best practices and presented six sigma processes at several events.
Additionally, Mr. Johnson has been appointed to the city of Cincinnati Economic Development & Job Task Force for 2013.
Mr. Johnson is the proud father of two children; his wife is an engineer in the automotive industry.