A community activist for over 23 years, Debra Parker is known in her community as a role model, mentor and consensus builder and has served as liaison between residents and local officials. An advocate for better life choices to improve the quality of life for low-income families she has traveled the country speaking on policies that affect the people she serves. Debra Parker is a member of the Housing Choice Voucher Participant Council.
A former Altgeld resident, Debra Parker served as Vice President of the Local Advisory Council at Altgeld Gardens and was a voting member of the Altgeld Gardens Working Group. Working as an Information and Referral Counselor for Teenage Mothers with the Chicago Housing Authority, Ms. Parker was able to utilize her wealth of knowledge in housing issues while addressing and promoting upward mobility for all CHA residents.
After working for over a decade for Holabird & Root Architecture, Debra’s experience and expertise in permit administration catapulted her to form her own company: Carol’s Consulting and Expediting Services that assisted small minority businesses with architectural administrative tasks as well as licensing and permits.
Debra Parker studied Organizational Leadership at Roosevelt University in Chicago and she looks forward to advancing and improving the working relationship between CHA and its Resident Leadership through shared interests and responsibilities.