MAYOR MAMDANI APPOINTS RENITA FRANCOIS AS DEPUTY MAYOR FOR COMMUNITY SAFETY

 

Francois brings more than 15 years of experience in evidence-based community safety initiatives, cross-government coordination and executive leadership 

 

Mayor signs Executive Order creating first-ever Office of Community Safety, a major step toward core campaign commitment

Today, Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani appointed Renita Francois as Deputy Mayor for Community Safety and signed an Executive Order to create the first-ever Mayor’s Office of Community Safety.

Francois brings more than 15 years of strategic and operational experience spanning major city agencies, nonprofit advocacy organizations and think tanks. Most recently, she served as Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Program Officer at Tides Advocacy, where she set the organization’s long-term strategy, oversaw millions of dollars in grants and managed relationships with political leaders and community organizations nationwide.

Francois previously served as Executive Director of the Mayor’s Action Plan for Neighborhood Safety within the Office of Criminal Justice under Mayor Bill de Blasio, where she oversaw more than $500 million in investments in neighborhood safety initiatives—particularly in communities experiencing high-crime—and led strategic efforts across more than a dozen city agencies.

She is a respected leader in the criminal justice space, advising citywide campaigns such as Campaign Zero and providing policy insight to leading institutions including the Vera Institute for Justice.

The Office of Community Safety marks a major step toward fulfilling Mayor Mamdani’s pledge to create a Department of Community Safety, a whole-of-government approach to crime prevention and public safety that addresses gun violence prevention, mental health and substance abuse treatment, hate crime prevention, victims services, and subway safety.

The Office will focus on addressing the root causes of crime and violence, streamlining and expanding evidence-based crime prevention programs and strengthening wraparound services so no New Yorker is left behind.

“The cornerstone of a dignified life is true community safety — and that safety is built through relentless investment in the services that keep New Yorkers safe,” said Mayor Mamdani. “Our administration will not wait for change, we will build it. With the creation of the Office of Community Safety and the appointment of Renita Francois as Deputy Mayor, we are taking a decisive step toward a city where everyone, in every neighborhood, can live free from violence. Renita will lead this work with clarity, compassion and an unwavering commitment to New Yorkers too often left behind — from families confronting gun violence to people navigating mental health crises, hate crimes or substance use issues.”

The Executive Order establishes the Office of Community Safety, to be led by a Commissioner who reports directly to the Deputy Mayor. The Office will develop citywide community safety strategies and coordinate the work of the Office of Crime Victim Services, Office to Prevent Gun Violence, Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence, Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes and Office of Community Mental Health.

It will also coordinate citywide mental health crisis response programs, including B-HEARD, and convene interagency community safety committees, to ensure New Yorkers receive appropriate care in moments of crisis.

“The evidence is clear: addressing what ails our communities, whether that be crumbling physical infrastructure, social disconnection, or lack of access to economic opportunity, is how we best ensure that our communities are safe. Yet, for decades, these communities have been left waiting. That ends today,” said Deputy Mayor Renita Francois. “I’m proud to join the Mamdani Administration as Deputy Mayor for Community Safety and to develop the vision for the Department of Community Safety. Every New Yorker from Highbridge to Stapleton to Bushwick deserves to feel safe and be safe, and we will invest the resources to ensure well coordinated responses rooted in dignity and care, centered in community and informed by the experiences of those closest to the solutions meet our fellow New Yorkers who need it most.”

“I am proud to celebrate the appointment of Renita Francois as Deputy Mayor of the first-ever Mayor’s Office of Community Safety,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James. “Throughout her years of dedicated service to the people of New York City, Renita has demonstrated a commitment to identifying solutions that keep our communities safe and supports that help them thrive. I look forward to her leadership.”

“We are so excited to have Renita Francois join our Administration as the Deputy Mayor for Community Safety. Renita has dedicated her career to fighting for the communities far too often forgotten — working with them to deliver solutions that create true safety,” said First Deputy Mayor Dean Fuleihan. “Renita is an innovator and champion for justice, and there is no one better to lead this work that will address the root causes of violence and change our city for generations to come.”

“Keeping New Yorkers safe requires more than one approach,” said NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch. “It means making sure people have access to the resources and services they need, whether that’s career training, an afterschool program, or a police response. I look forward to working with Deputy Mayor Francois to ensure New Yorkers get the supports they need, while our officers remain focused on the work they are trained to do.”