Alicka Ampry-Samuel is an American lawyer and politician. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, she served as a New York City Council member for the 41st district. The district included portions of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Ocean Hill-Brownsville,

East Flatbush East Flatbush is a residential neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. East Flatbush is bounded by Crown Heights and Empire Boulevard to the north; Brownsville and East 98th Street to the east; Flatlands, Canarsie and the ...

, Crown Heights in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. In an upset, Ampry-Samuel was defeated for re-election in 2021 by

Darlene Mealy Darlene Mealy is an American politician who is a member of the New York City Council from the 41st district, which includes Brownsville, Bushwick, Crown Heights, East Flatbush and Prospect Lefferts Gardens in Brooklyn. A Democrat, Mealy prev ...

, the former Council member whom Ampry-Samuel had succeeded four years earlier.

Early life and education

Ampry-Samuel was born and raised in Brownsville, one of the most impoverished neighborhoods of Brooklyn. She graduated from

North Carolina A&T State University North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (also known as North Carolina A&T State University, North Carolina A&T, N.C. A&T, or simply A&T) is a public, historically black land-grant research university in Greensboro, North Caro ...

and the

CUNY School of Law The City University of New York School of Law (CUNY School of Law) is a public law school in New York City. It was founded in 1983 as part of the City University of New York. CUNY School of Law was established as a public interest law school wi ...

Career

Ampry-Samuel first ran for the City Council in 2005, but lost to

in the Democratic primary. Prior to public office, Ampry-Samuel worked as a Child Protective Specialist with the NYC Administration for Children Services. From 2012 to 2014, during a stint at the US Embassy in

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

, she worked as a communication and outreach specialist for the

United States Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 b ...

and subsequently on a human rights portfolio in the Embassy’s Political Office. She also served as Chief of Staff for State Assemblywoman Latrice Walker.

New York City Council

Three-term Councilwoman

was term-limited in 2017 and unable to seek another term. Ampry-Samuel was one of nine Democrats who vied to replace her, and she won the Democratic primary with just over 31% of the vote. She would go on to win the general election in the overwhelmingly Democratic district with over 95% of the vote. Ampry-Samuel was sworn into office on January 1, 2018.

Housing and Urban Development

Ampry-Samuel was sworn into office as the Regional Administrator for New York and New Jersey of the

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the Secretary of Housing and Urb ...

on January 18, 2022.

References

External links

Councilwoman Alicka Ampry-Samuel official siteBiographical sketch
in

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ampry-Samuel, Alicka Living people New York (state) Democrats New York City Council members People from Brownsville, Brooklyn 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians African-American New York City Council members Women New York City Council members 1976 births 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women