New Funding for the NYCHA Health Corps
On November 5, Kalshi, the Public Housing Community Fund (PHCF), NYCHA, and U.S. Congressman Ritchie Torres announced a four-year, $1 million commitment to establish the Kalshi Public Housing Health Fund. This historic investment will anchor the NYCHA Health Corps, a program designed to create lasting pathways for NYCHA residents across the five boroughs to explore public health careers and support health initiatives and programming for public housing residents citywide. The announcement was made at the PSS Andrew Jackson Senior Center in the Bronx by Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour, PHCF Executive Director Alex Zablocki, U.S. Congressman Ritchie Torres, and NYCHA’s Senior Vice President of Resident Services, Partnerships, and Initiatives Kathleen Corradi.
“New York City can be the financial capital of the world and be a place where we protect our most vulnerable. We see this as an investment in a safer, healthier, and more resilient future for New Yorkers,” said Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour.
“Growing up in NYCHA, neighbors would always check in on each other when someone got sick. This informal support system provided residents with help they might not have otherwise received. The NYCHA Health Corps builds on this network of care, by training residents to become health workers in their own communities. The Bronx has long ranked worst in health outcomes in New York State, and investing in community-led care is an innovative way to improve wellbeing in our borough. This new $1 million in funding will allow the Health Corps to continue to grow and provide even more families with top-notch care. I am excited to join the Public Housing Community Fund and NYCHA to welcome a new cohort into the program, and I look forward to seeing the lifesaving work they will do,” said U.S. Congressman Ritchie Torres.
“NYCHA’s residents are among our greatest strengths, and when we invest in them, we improve countless lives across public housing,” said NYCHA Chief Executive Officer Lisa Bova-Hiatt. “We’re thrilled that the NYCHA Health Corps will be reliably funded over the next four years, giving residents a lasting pathway into public health careers. We are grateful to our partners who have made this program possible, and we look forward to swearing in our next cohort this December!”
“For generations, public housing residents have demonstrated what it means to care for one another. We’ve seen time and again that those closest to the challenges facing their communities are often the first to step forward with solutions. During the pandemic, we witnessed this firsthand as residents became trusted voices, advocates, and lifelines for their neighbors amid profound health disparities,” said Public Housing Community Fund Executive Director Alex Zablocki. “The NYCHA Health Corps builds on that legacy of service, turning community leadership into meaningful opportunities for training, employment, and healthier neighborhoods. Kalshi’s extraordinary $1 million commitment recognizes residents’ power to lead change and provides us with the resources to sustain and scale that impact across all five boroughs. We’re grateful to Kalshi for investing not just in a program but in the people who have always been at the heart of stronger, healthier public housing communities.”
The NYCHA Health Corps, led by NYCHA’s Department of Resident Health Initiatives in partnership with PHCF, provides public housing residents with real-world experience and training in public health while they work to improve health outcomes in neighborhoods across the city. The $1 million, four-year commitment will support Health Corps members’ living allowances as they volunteer in service to the program. Now in its second year, the Health Corps will swear in up to 35 public housing residents from all five boroughs this December.
At the start of each cohort, members are placed at public agencies and nonprofit host sites, including NYCHA, the NYC Health Department, NYC Health + Hospitals, and local community organizations. Members engage directly with residents to share critical resources and information about programming related to chronic disease prevention, family wellbeing, and social determinants of health. Health Corps members will also support programs such as Healthy Start @ NYCHA and address other pressing health needs across public housing. Throughout the program, participants receive training, learning, and professional development, along with access to direct pathways to careers in public health and related fields.
With support from this donation, up to 20 host-site organizations across the city will provide structured, on-the-job health training and deliver health workforce training sessions and career development sessions. The program’s goal is to place 60 percent of graduates in health-related jobs or continued education within four months of completing service. The program kicked off in 2023 and has so far served thousands of residents citywide.
Kalshi’s $1 million commitment to PHCF follows the company’s $3 million partnership with Housing Works, aimed to expand access to quality healthcare, fuel workforce development, and strengthen community services for thousands of New Yorkers in need.
Photos courtesy of the Public Housing Community Fund
