Cutline Columbiana Metropolitan Housing Authority Executive Director Rich Wymer with his diploma from the PHADA (Public Housing Authorities Directors Association)-Rutgers Executive Director Education Program which he graduated from in January. (Photo by Kristi R. Garabrandt)

EAST LIVERPOOL — Columbiana Metropolitan Housing Authority Executive Director Rich Wymer recently graduated from PHADA (Public Housing Authorities Directors Association)-Rutgers Executive Director Education Program is now looking forward to sharing his education with his staff and better the CMHA.

Wymer graduated from the program Jan. 6, in Tampa, Fla.

The Director Education Program is an 18-month, 10-course program which has been conducted by Rutgers University since 1994 to educate executive directors who want to stay with industry standards and gain new insights in the executive director’s profession, according to a description on the PHADA website.

Wymer described the program’s purpose as being one to teach new executive directors or even current directors about the ins-and-outs of the director’s position and expectations. He noted that some directors go through the program after being in their position for 10-15 years and some are new directors, so the program is well diversified on the experience the directors bring to the program with them.

Wymer said he had been in the executive director’s position for about three-and-a half-years when he began the program.

Some of the course Wymer took included education on executive director development, ethics, housing management, finance management, legal issue management, personnel management, procurement and contracts management, learning the HUD (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development) PHAST and SEMAP indicators of how a housing authority is scored, public relations and communications and planning for change.

He said there is always changes coming through HUD, so the program tries to prepare directors –the HUD scoring is how housing authorities are awarded funding.

“So far our scores have been pretty amazing,” Wymer said. Our INSPIRE score, which we just had one, our housing authority scored 93% which is basically an A average and is called high performing.”

INSPIRE is a physical inspection of the properties. Most housing authorities have been scoring between the low 60 and 80s with not a lot of 90s.

Wymer said that the course involved a lot of traveling around the United States. He traveled to various locations for a week at a time to complete two courses. He noted that it was a lot to learn in a short period.

The education has given him the tools to make educated decisions instead of just shooting from the hip, Wymer said. He noted that oft-times directors turn to other directors or cohorts for advice./ This education program has allowed him to develop a whole network of other people and gives the ability to make educated and intelligent decisions when trying to make something happen that as a director you haven’t seen or encountered before.

“A lot of times in this profession there is a lot of new stuff that you haven’t encountered before, such as shootings,” Wymer said noting that there had been a recent shooting that was not on CMHA property but had something to do with someone at one of the properties.

Wymer views the networking system he was able to develop though the course of the program as valuable as the education he obtained from the program. Because he now has a network with directors from all around the country to help find solutions. It also gives him access to PHADA which is able to get an answer to a question directly from Washington D.C. without going through the middlemen in between.

“There are always changes and there is always the betterment of the people at the authority and the authority itself,” Wymer said. “My goal here is to house as many people as possible with safe, clean housing. By taking the course it does give you the opportunity to figure out other ways to finance things and other ways to think outside the box because I believe funding from HUD will be cut more and more so there is the need to figure out other ways to fund the authority.” he said.

Wymer believes a switch to RAD (Rental Assistance Determination) or to get LIHTC (Low Income Housing Tax Credit) is going to be huge in the future and so figuring out other ways to make a housing authority prosper in the future when there isn’t going to be the money is the goal.

Wymer believes these programs could be a way to get income from other assets such as private investors who get a tax break, which would work as a community partnership.

He noted that whether federal funds or funding from the private sector, there will be challenges either way, but he believes the private sector offers the ability to grow by not being restricted on tenant qualification guidelines and provide more funding to pay higher wages to employees and government funds are limited private sector funding has no limit.

He said that CMHA has not explored going with private investors yet, but they are going to explore it.

Wymer began his career at the CMHA 16 years ago in the maintenance department where he was able to utilize his electrical and plumbing degree and pest control license. He moved up to maintenance superintendent and then to operations supervisor, followed by the deputy director’s position to his current position as executive director.

Making his way up the ladder has given Wymer the benefit of understanding the housing authority from all aspects.

kgarabrandt@mojonews.com