NAHMA honors long-time JAHMA member, leader

The National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA) announces the winners of its 2023 Industry and AHMA Awards, which will be presented during its Biannual Top Issues in Affordable Housing winter conference, March 6-8.

The list of award winners includes individuals and organizations whose professionalism, dedication, and accomplishments in assuring quality housing for low-income Americans raise the multifamily affordable housing industry standards.

NAHMA Industry Statesman Award
This award is given annually to NAHMA Executive Council members either in or nearing retirement, in recognition of many years of outstanding leadership and service to NAHMA. This year, NAHMA is recognizing JAHMA’s J. Kenneth Pagano.

J. Kenneth Pagano has spent nearly 50 years in the affordable housing management industry, including working for New Jersey Housing Finance Agency (NJHFA) and as president & CEO at Essex Plaza Management LLC. He is also a founding member of JAHMA, where he helped set up the JAHMA Foundation, which was established to provide scholarships for those tenants living in JAHMA affordable housing properties. Pagano joined NAHMA in the early 1990s, held several positions in the organization, and became president from 2015 to 2016. In 2005, Pagano was honored with the NAHMA President’s Award.

“Both of the Stateman Award honorees’ careers mark an unparalleled commitment to advancing quality affordable housing for Americans in need, and their service to NAHMA over the years has been tireless, as well as instrumental in the success of the organization,” Kris Cook, CAE, NAHMA CEO, said. “We sincerely appreciate their commitment of time, energy and leadership on behalf of affordable housing in general, and of NAHMA in particular.”

AHMA of the Year
Given to AHMAs using criteria such as size, number of members, success in membership recruitment, membership retention, education and training course attendance, financial stability, and other factors.

This year NAHMA gave the Small AHMA of the Year as a joint award to JAHMA and PennDel AHMA

JAHMA leadership has embraced the ever-changing affordable housing industry and has continued to take an active role in upholding the standards set before them. Through virtual learning, in-person events and an annual Spring Management Event conference, JAHMA has delivered exemplary education to its members and industry as a whole.

PennDel AHMA leadership continued their focus on providing exemplary education, informative membership meetings and a two-day conference and expo. For the first time since 2019, PennDel AHMA hosted a two-day Fall Management Conference & Expo at a new location in Bethlehem, Penn.

“NAHMA believes that both AHMAs are instrumental in furthering the cause of excellent affordable housing and maintaining high standards in the industry, and their many accomplishments over the past year have been noteworthy. The NAHMA Nominating Committee felt that the joint award was appropriate, given the collaborative work between the AHMAs on many educational offerings throughout the year, as well as in recognition of the exemplary work of the AHMA executive director and staff colleagues in keeping both AHMAs running at such high levels of performance simultaneously,” Cook said.