Jim Becker is the President and Chief Executive Officer at RCF Connects. He joined the Richmond Community Foundation in 2005, becoming its President and CEO in 2014. Mr. Becker served on the Berkeley Global Campus Community Working Group and currently co-chairs the Ensuring Opportunity Campaign to End Poverty in Contra Costa County.
He also serves on the Advisory Council for John F. Kennedy University’s Sanford Institute on Philanthropy. He was recognized in 2013 as a Contra Costa County Man of Merit, and in 2015 received the United Way of the Bay Area’s Dream Award for his work to end poverty.
On May 1, Mr. Becker's presentation will focus on RCF's program to renovate 'zombie homes' to produce low income housing. Using HUD approved programs and lenders, these homes are then offered without deed restrictions to low income buyers, helping them to build inter-generational wealth and overcome social, economic, and environmental justice issues. Their success attributes in part to zero-interest funds by way of a private bond sale, for which they already have an investor; and partly to using the renovations as a means for training contractors to become developers in exchange for reduced rates. The city incurs no expense, but actually saves money otherwise lost to code enforcement duties, public safety actions, etc.