Cy Richardson

SVP of Economics & Housing , National Urban League

Cy Richardson is a Senior Vice President at the National Urban League, and a member of the League’s Executive Leadership Team. Prior to being appointed in 2013 to lead the League’s Programs Department, he previously served as Vice President for Housing and Community Development where he promoted asset building and wealth creation for people of color in urban America. In his current role he leads the League’s program design, implementation and evaluation activities, supporting national efforts to create economic and social opportunities and ensure that prosperity is widely shared regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, or geography. As a grants officer, he has supported efforts to increase economic security and mobility for low-income families, close the racial wealth gap, and advance financial inclusion.  Before joining NUL in 2002, Cy worked in various positions in New York City municipal government including as a researcher and policy analyst with the New York City Council, with the New York State Legislature on economic policy issues, and as a Land Use Planner for the Brooklyn Borough President. 

Cy has published numerous reports and articles on a range of economic topics, including housing and urban development policy; he also conducts basic and applied research around the guiding principles and practices of equitable development and is a frequent commentator and blogger on the boosts and blocks to building sustainable wealth in communities of color. His scholarly interests include economic inequality and intergenerational economic mobility. His research has been featured in the nation’s top publications, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and many others, and he speaks frequently at a broad spectrum of events. He has served as a Director on the Atlantic Yards Community Development Corporation and on the boards of numerous nonprofit institutions, including America Scores! and the Center for Financial Planning.

Cy earned a B.A. with honors in Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a four-year starter and captain of the nationally-ranked baseball team. He holds graduate degrees in City and Regional Planning from Pratt Institute and Urban Politics from the City University of New York’s Graduate Center. In 2001 Cy received an Advanced Certificate in Urban Policy Analysis from Humboldt University (Berlin) and in 2013 earned an Executive Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Georgetown University. Cy lives in Brooklyn and is a proud husband and father of two girls.