In 2018, Janelle Farris became the Executive Director and President of Brooklyn Community Services. Our former Chief Operating Officer, Janelle is a long-time and experienced non-profit leader with a passion for solving systemic inequity in Brooklyn at its root cause. Former roles include the Associate Director of Operations at the Pratt Center for Community Development, as well as director of the largest single-occupancy supportive housing facility in the country, The Times Squarea at Common Ground. Janelle holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Spelman College and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Harvard University.

In 2018, Jodi Querbach became our Chief Operating Officer, overseeing BCS’ 35 programs across Brooklyn. Jodi Querbach joined Brooklyn Community Services in 2004 and worked as the Director of Family Services, overseeing the Bedford Stuyvesant and East New York Family Centers. After many years of hard work and commitment to the families we serve, Jodi was promoted to BCS’s Deputy Operating Officer. She has over twenty years experience working with children and families in Brooklyn, and is a graduate of Yeshiva University’s Wurzweiler School for Social Work.

Alba Rodriguez is currently the Chief Strategy and Data Officer of Brooklyn Community Services. As CSDO, she is responsible for overseeing data, external relations, fundraising and IT, and for leading the development and execution of organizational strategy. Prior to joining BCS, Alba served as VP of the Posse Institute at The Posse Foundation, one of the largest youth leadership development and college success organizations in the country. Alba has also managed projects for Firefly Education, LLC; led major youth-assessment initiatives serving low-income students for the College Success Foundation; and provided strategic consulting for elite colleges and other organizations on their diversity programs. Alba holds a B.S. in philosophy and biopsychology from Tufts University and an Ed.M. in human development and psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Angela currently serves as our Chief Program Officer, overseeing our 42 programs across the borough. She is a New York state licensed LMSW who completed her graduate MSW at New York University and her Social Work undergraduate studies at University of California, Berkeley. She has worked both in the US and overseas as a social worker, mainly in the areas of youth development, chemical dependency, homelessness and disaster recovery. Prior to becoming our Chief Program Officer, she served as our Deputy Chief Operating Officer and Division Director of Youth Services, starting with BCS in 2013.

Luke brings more than twenty years of talent leadership experience with social service organizations supporting underserved New Yorkers in need of housing, jobs, family support, education, economic opportunity, health care and maintenance, recreation and a variety of life changing services. He has experience in talent development; organizational design; compensation; benefits; employee relations; recruitment and retention; compliance and employment law; HRIS and information systems; diversity, equity and inclusion; and nearly every aspect of human resources. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the University at Albany SUNY and a Masters of Information and Library Science from Pratt Institute as well as SHRM-CP and SPHR certification. Luke knows he is fortunate to be able to support hard working (and almost always underpaid and underrecognized) human services non-profit professionals at BCS.

Adil Elkari is a highly accomplished information technology director with a proven track record of meeting BCS’s needs and delivering positive outcomes. Adil has a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from City College of New York. Adil has also been certified as a system engineer by Microsoft, Cisco and Novell. During the last twenty years, Adil has been leading BCS’ IT team through critical organizational initiatives and projects.

Onyeka Obasi is a business development strategist with over twenty years in consulting, non-profit management, corporate philanthropy, entrepreneurial finance, and infrastructure financing. She has held C-level positions in both the nonprofit and private sectors. In 2009, Onyeka received the prestigious Distinguished Alumni Award from Boston University School of Public Health. She is also a recipient of the exclusive Forte Fellowship for Women MBAs; a member of Women in Fintech (Bloomberg LP), NYC FinTech Women, and Women & Blockchain; and she sits on several nonprofit and social enterprise boards. Onyeka is a strong advocate for the use of big data and believes that technology and innovation are critical to sustainable economic growth. She is multilingual, well published, and has spoken and presented at several international conferences. She was featured on prominent news media including Forbes, Good Morning Africa, BBC’s Africa Have Your Say, and Swedish Skånska Dagbladet. Onyeka holds an MPH from Boston University, MPA from Harvard, and MBA from MIT.

Jasmin Sowell-Spears currently serves as our Division Director of Education and Youth Development, overseeing BCS after school programming services, as well as childcare and learning to work services. She has worked over 10 years in the youth development sector, working as a community school director where she established a school-based food pantry with Island Harvest and a mental health clinic at Adelphi University. The product of a single parent household, Jasmin was raised in Brownsville, Brooklyn and is passionate about helping residents realize that “the world is waiting to receive them.” She is a United States Army Reserve Veteran, serving on a tour to Iraq under the Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation Enduring Freedom (OIF/OEF). Jasmin’s educational background includes a Bachelors of Public Administration from Medgar Evers College, a Masters of Public Administration from Baruch College, and a Masters of Social Work from Fordham University.

Jessica Tenzer has served as our Division Director for Families, Community Building, and Workforce Development since 2020. Prior to this role, she joined the BCS team as the Director of our Preventive Services programs in 2018. Jessica is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with an MSW from NYU. Since that time she has been working in underserved communities with children, families and individuals as an agent of support and guidance. Her professional life includes a commitment to advocacy and social justice, and she has spent many years working to prevent abuse and neglect of children and to keep families together safely without the need for placement into foster care.

Marlies Paul is a Social Worker with nineteen years’ experience in Human Service leadership. He has an extensive background in Mental Health and Housing for special needs population and is a strong advocate for access to more affordable housing and services for underserved populations. He believes in intentionally fostering a professional environment conducive to staff growth and development and in restoring and protecting the dignity of every person that shows up for services.

Rose Sauls joined Brooklyn Community Services in 2007 as the Medicaid Service Coordinator Supervisor with 7 years’ experience working in the mental health and social services field. She began as the MSC unit supervisor overseeing 1 program with 5 Case managers. Within 3 years, due to her dedication and passion for advocating for her clients Rose was promoted to Division Director of Services for People Living with Disabilities. Under her leadership the division has grown to encompass 14 programs with 40 staff serving over 500 clients. She now has over fifteen years’ experience working with individuals with disabilities and mental health. Rose did her undergraduate work in sociology and psychology at New Paltz and earned her Master’s in Social Work from Fordham University in 2001. She is a licensed social worker and SIFI trained. In her free time she Chair’s a sub-committee for Providers ‘and Family Information under the umbrella of the Brooklyn Developmental Disability Council.