Vanessa Panico serves as director of Community Life (CL) for The Community Builders, Inc. (TCB) in New York, a position she has held since 2022. She supports CL teams across New York and New Jersey, providing resident-centered strategic approaches to create equitable pathways for resident and neighborhood success.

Previously, Vanessa served as director of supportive services for seven years at the Westchester County Shelter/Homeless Services. In this role, she developed and implemented five social services and community-based programs for at-risk individuals in the White Plains area. Prior to that, Vanessa served as director of supportive housing for five years, managing a team responsible for maintaining audit-ready files in advance of Department of Social Services or HUD compliance visits.

Vanessa holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in forensic psychology from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City.