Tonnetta Graham is a Philadelphia native who is a Founder and current President of the Strawberry Mansion Community Development Corporation (SMCDC), a nonprofit organization dedicated to neighborhood preservation, commercial, residential and economic development, planning and advocacy. She has successfully lead community engagement efforts and negotiations on a wide variety of development projects that have resulted in community benefits that stabilized the Strawberry Mansion neighborhood and empowered its longtime residents. Her visionary leadership of SMCDC lead to the creation of a variety of programs and initiatives such as the Strawberry Mansion Historic Home Repair Program, Homeowner Emergency Repair Grant, Strawberry Mansion Neighborhood Conservation Overlay and the Essential Documents programs. Her additional service efforts include board affiliations with the Strawberry Mansion Neighborhood Action Center, East Fairmount Park Coalition, Community Partnership School Trustee Board and the Audubon/Outward Bound Discovery Center Board.
She serves as a Community Engagement Consultant for Philadelphia Parks and Recreation and as an Instructor for the Philadelphia Citizen’s Planning Institute. She also is a contributor to its Citizen’s Tool Kit and Philadelphia’s Neighborhood Preservation Tool Kit. Tonnetta has a BS in Human Resource Management from Indiana University of PA and her MS in Higher Education and Organizational Leadership from Drexel University with additional certifications in Volunteer Management and Citizen Planning.
