Board of Directors
Charles Powell Jr. Esq.
Board Member
CHARLES POWELL JR. Esq.
BIOGRAPHY
Born and raised in the Village of Harlem (where his family resided for many years in the “Colonial” or Ralph Rangel Houses), Charles is a 1971 graduate of The City College of New York (CCNY), with a degree in Political Science. As a CCNY student, Charles was a leader of the Black & Puerto Rican Student Community (BPRSC). He helped lead the 1969 Student campus takeover and was a principal negotiator with CCNY/CUNY of the student’s “Five Demands”. Winning awards at the Roxbury International Film Festival, the Pan African Film Festival and the American Black Film Festival – all in 2023 - “The Five Demands” is now chronicled as a PBS documentary.
Following his graduation, Charles obtained a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Illinois College of Law in 1974. He was admitted to the bar of the State of New York in 1975 and maintained his practice of law principally as a litigator in Civil Rights/Constitutional Law until 2000. He taught a pre-law course in the Black Studies Department of CCNY from 1977 to 1995. In 1992, as a Charles H. Revson Fellow of the Urban Legal Studies Program at CCNY, Charles joined a group of 30 lawyers who traveled to South Africa to assist in the development and establishment of what would be its first Democratic Constitution. While there he lectured on Constitutional law at the University of Cape Town. To this day, Charles considers working with lawyers from around the world as one of his greatest lifetime achievements.
In 2000 he joined The Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce heading its housing development initiative and is a special advisor to its CEO and Board on business development and strategic alliances. Charles has worked as a consultant and advisor to several non-profit and business entities including the Harlem Business Alliance, serving as its Director of Business Development and Senior Vice-President from 2003 to 2006.
Currently, Charles is the President & CEO of New Origins Development, Corp., an entity specializing in small business retention and development. He was appointed to the Manhattan Community Board 10 in May 2016, where he serves on the Housing and Land Use Committees. He was appointed Chair of the Housing Committee in July 2016 and elected as Second Vice-Chair of the Board in June 2017 and then First Vice- Chair in November 2022.
Charles is an ordained Deacon at First Corinthian Baptist Church (FCBC); a member of the FCBC Community Development Corporation Board of Directors and has served as an elected New York County Democratic Committee member. Service to God and to community is in Charles’ DNA. There is no call to serve that is ever ignored or considered too small to respond to. Most importantly, Charles is a proud husband, father and grandfather, and a mentor and advisor to many.
Madeleine Dorval-Moller
Executive Director
Madeleine Dorval-Moller joined NMPP as its Executive Director in August 2017. She has a wide range of experience running non-profit programs, covering services from disaster case management, to homeless prevention, to domestic violence.
Prior to joining NMPP, Madeleine successfully ran the New York State Disaster Case Management Program for Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens, to address the increasing needs of families affected by Super Storm Sandy. More specifically, Mrs. Dorval-Moller spent 10 years working with survivors of domestic violence, first at Safe Horizon, where she served as a Shelter Director for two separate programs, including Sage House, where she was the founding director. She integrated traditional social services with yoga, art therapy and dance classes, to help mothers and children cope with their experiences dealing with domestic violence, and to become more resilient. She later became Executive Director of the North Brooklyn Coalition Against Family Violence (the Coalition), another domestic violence prevention organization, serving the neighborhoods of Williamsburg, Bushwick, and Greenpoint. At the Coalition, she continuously forged partnerships with every local organization possible, including local schools, churches, local businesses, and police precincts, to raise awareness of domestic violence. Under her leadership, the Coalition received a Congressional Award, (Ed Towns), applauding the organization’s role in combating domestic violence in North Brooklyn. NMPP’s mission and work resonate with Mrs. Dorval-Moller- she is excited to be part of this vibrant organization.
Madeleine Dorval-Moller holds a BA in Political Science from NYU, and two graduate degrees from Columbia University: Master of Social Work, and Master of Public Administration.
Jimmie Brown
Secretary/Acting Chair
Mrs. Jimmie Brown was born in Harlem Hospital and raised in Harlem in the Abraham Lincoln Projects. She attended NYC Department of Education public schools from elementary to high school. Mrs. Jimmie Brown is one of the founding members of NMPP. In 1992 she received a call from the Supervisor, Mrs. Helen Jordan, of Family Redirection a program under The New York Urban League a program she was involved with due to domestic violence. Mrs. Jordan asked how did I feel about infant morality and babies dying? She explained that community residents like myself felt the same and were interested in an initiative to assist in reducing the infant morality here in Central Harlem. With The New York Urban League, Mrs. Brown, along with other founding members took interest in this initiative which has turned into Greater Harlem Healthy Start, NMPP's longest standing program. At age 38, she decided to return to school. While caring for her family which included 6 children, Mrs. Brown was able to attend summer classes from 1992 to 1996 and earned her BS in Sociology from the College of New Rochelle. She then continued furthering her education at Adelphi University, attaining a dual Masters in Special Education and General Education, as well as a third Masters in Reading. During her school days she volunteered as surrogate parent in District 5 for children referred to special education and those children with an IEP. Mrs. Brown has worked for the NYC Department of Education as a Special Education and General Education Teacher. She has worked as a Special Education provider for children in their homes. She is still actively involved in her community, working with PA/PTAs of Title I schools in District 3.
Paula Odellas
Board Member
Paula Odellas has served on the NMPP board since joining it shortly after its creation, in its first year of full operation. She is an analyst, educator, speaker and certified financial planner. She currently serves as an administrative staff analyst, permanent civil service, in the NYC Buildings Department and is active in various community organizations.
As a National Achievement Scholar, she received her Bachelor's Degree from Adelphi University, followed by a Master's from the Harvard University School of Education, also under full tuition scholarship. While employed by New York City, she acquired a Master's Degree in Business Administration in finance from Baruch College of the City University of New York, under the Mayor's Graduate Scholarship Program.
A resident of Harlem in New York City, Mrs. Odellas serves in various capacities on the boards of several New York City non-profit organizations, including that of Personnel Committee Chairperson of NMPP. She also serves as treasurer of the American Association of Individual Investors, New York City Chapter, an educational organization for investors, and as treasurer and a founding member of Buyers and Renters United to Save Harlem (BRUSH), a Harlem advocacy group for residents. As a professional dancer, she performed with several modern dance companies and for more than 20 years has served as a dance judge in the NAACP's annual Academic, Cultural, Technical, Scientifiec and Oratory (ACT-SO) Competition. She has served on the New York Urban League Manhattan Advisory Board as well as the board of the New York Urban League, and as co-chair of the Women's Advisors of New York City, an organization for women City employees. She has received a National Association of Business and Professional Women's Club, NYC Chapter, Women's History Month Celebrarion Award and has participated in the Club's annual Women History Month events as mistress of ceremonies.
John Lewis Brown, Esq.
Board Member
John Lewis Brown is a practicing lawyer and owner of the firm Maher & Brown. He attended Hope College and Rutgers Law School where he received his BA and JD. Mr. Brown joined the Board in 2010 and also sits on the board for the Arturo Schomburg Democratic Club.
Gloria Thomas
Board Member
Gloria Thomas was born in Panama, Republic of Panama and has lived most of her life in Brooklyn, NY. Mrs. Thomas attended Lehman College where she obtained her BA and also attended Columbia University where she obtained her MSW. Mrs. Thomas has been employed by Columbia University for the past 24 years where she has supervised and managed different programs.