Monique Davis

Habitat for Humanity of Orange County (Habitat OC) announced today the appointment of Monique Davis as the President and CEO of the nonprofit organization.

Davis, who previously served as the Chief People Officer at Brilliant Corners and currently serves as the Executive Director of the Buena Park Collaborative, has over 20 years of experience in the housing and human resource sectors. Her knowledge of housing needs in Southern California, DEI work and expertise in overseeing diverse teams put her in an optimal position to successfully carry forward Habitat OC's mission.

This appointment comes amidst an affordable housing shortage in Orange County. Davis' longstanding advocacy for affordable housing along with her work to end homelessness will be assets to help the organization find and implement solutions. 

"Having a passion for helping people learn how to become homeowners in order to break the cycle of poverty and create generational wealth, I am thrilled to join the Habitat OC team," Davis said. 

"Innovation and acceleration will be my number one focus. We need to find innovative ways to accelerate our builds, to diversify our projects and to increase partnerships with communities and cities to combat the affordable housing shortage."

Davis joins the organization as Sharon Ellis prepares for her retirement after 17 years as President & CEO. During her tenure, Ellis nearly doubled the number of Habitat homes in Orange County and was instrumental in helping form Habitat for Humanity California, which advocates for affordable housing with a specific focus on homeownership opportunities for families with limited incomes. She also helped launch the Hand-Up Home Repair and Neighborhood Revitalization programs. 

"I am excited for Habitat OC's future with Monique as the President & CEO. We need to start thinking bigger by exploring larger projects and we need to continue broadening the partnership opportunities that we've started... I think Monique will embrace the opportunity to do that and make it happen with renewed vigor and energy," said Ellis.

Davis will start her new role on May 2, 2022 with Ellis retiring on May 6, 2022.

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