Press Release
Community Service Society Announces New Vice President, Emerita Torres
The Community Service Society (CSS) is pleased to introduce Emerita Torres as its new Vice President for Policy, Research and Advocacy.
A Bronx-native Latina and graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School and New York University, Ms. Torres comes to CSS after more than a decade as a diplomat with the U.S. Department of State where she developed and coordinated policy and programs on human rights, conflict prevention, multilateral coordination, and international development and partnerships. Most recently, she directed policy research, programs, and strategic engagement for the Soufan Center, a nonpartisan global strategy center dedicated to increasing awareness about global security issues nationally and around the world, including humanitarian crises, countering violent white supremacy, responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, and more.
Ms. Torres is also an Associate Board Member with the Women’s Housing and Economic Development Corporation (WHEDCO) where she has and continues to contribute to the community development organization’s work to build a more economically-vibrant Bronx, including providing policy analysis and insights, and increasing fundraising and volunteer efforts.
She will serve on the CSS Leadership Team and lead the organization’s five-person policy research team.
“We are very excited to be adding Emerita Torres to our team. She brings unique experience building partnerships with community leaders, activists, academic institutions, thought leaders and government officials to advance policy and program initiatives that serve marginalized communities. She will be a tremendous asset as we reset our work and priorities to respond to the urgent needs of lower income communities disproportionately suffering the harshest impacts of the COVID-19 crisis,” said CSS President and CEO David R. Jones.
COVID-19 has been a setback for white-collar earners but a life-altering blow for many lower-income workers in the city’s Black and brown communities where persistent levels of poverty and barriers to resources have compounded the pandemic’s impact. Working with a group of Bronx activists, organizers and neighbors, Ms. Torres helped raise $20,000 to provide food support to hundreds of Bronx families experiencing devastating levels of food insecurity at the height of the health emergency. She says she will bring that same passion to her work at CSS.
“There is no shortage of socio-economic challenges facing low-income New Yorkers as the COVID-19 crisis and its devastating impacts continue to overwhelm our communities, especially as federal aid has dried up. I am thrilled to join the CSS team, and intend to draw on my local, national, and international experiences to reimagine public policies that truly address the root causes of economic disparities facing marginalized New Yorkers. We need to strengthen community coalitions, data-driven policy analysis, and public-partnerships to meet the challenges of this unprecedented moment in our history,” said Torres, who is excited to begin her new role.