Nancy Biberman is the founder of the Women's Housing & Economic Development Corporation (WHEDco), begun in 1988. She began her career as a Legal Services lawyer and was part of a team that sued New York City and State, winning the first class action lawsuit in the country to give battered women access to the court system and police protection. In 1980 she helped create the SRO Law Project and became the director of its East Side office, before going on to study at Columbia University's School of Architecture and Planning. During this time she developed a multigenerational housing plan for low-income tenants and raised $8.6 million for a 100-unit dwelling on Manhattan's Upper West Side. The completed project is the nationally recognized West End Intergenerational Residence, known for its breakthrough programs.
She has received numerous awards, including the 2009 National Charles L. Edson Tax Credit Excellence Award for Green Housing, the Paul Davidoff Award for Leadership in Housing and Equal Opportunity from the American Planning Association (2008), a James A. Johnson Fellowship from the Fannie Mae Foundation (2007), and a Revson Fellowship to study at Columbia University's School of Architecture and Planning (1987). Biberman received her BA from Barnard College of Columbia University and her JD from Rutgers University School of Law. She serves on the Board of Directors of Hostos Community College and the Freelancers Union Insurance Company.
