Rita C. Joseph (born July 24, 1970) is an American politician and educator serving as a member of the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City in the United States. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The council serves as a check against the mayor in a mayor-council government mod ...

for the 40th district. Elected in November 2021, she assumed office on January 1, 2022.

Early life and education

Joseph was born in

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( ; ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Haiti, most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 1,200,000 in 2022 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The me ...

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

, and immigrated to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

as a child. She was raised in

Ditmas Park Ditmas Park is a historic district in the neighborhood of Flatbush in Brooklyn, New York City. The traditional boundaries of Ditmas Park, including Ditmas Park West, are Ocean Avenue and greater Flatbush to the east, Dorchester Road and the Pr ...

and

Flatbush Flatbush is a neighborhood in the New York City Borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood consists of several subsections in central Brooklyn and is generally bounded by Prospect Park (Brooklyn), Prospect Park to the nort ...

. After graduating from Sarah J. Hale High School, she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in liberal arts from

St. Francis College St. Francis College (St. Francis of Brooklyn or SFC) is a private Franciscan college in Downtown Brooklyn, New York City. It was founded in 1859 by the Franciscan Brothers of Brooklyn as the St. Francis Academy and was the first private school ...

and a Master of Science in education and general studies from

Touro University, New York Touro University is a private Jewish university based in New York City, New York. It was founded by Bernard Lander in 1971, and named for Isaac and Judah Touro. It is a part of the Touro University System. Its mission includes a strong focu ...

Career

May 12 2025 - Hunger Heroes Event Rita Joseph

Outside of politics, Joseph worked as a teacher for over 20 years, including at Public School 6 in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. She was also appointed to serve as the chair of her local Neighborhood Advisory Board by State Senator Kevin Parker. Joseph was elected to the

in November 2021 and assumed office on January 1, 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joseph, Rita 1970 births 21st-century American women politicians American politicians of Haitian descent Educators from Brooklyn Living people New York (state) Democrats New York City Council members People from Flatbush, Brooklyn People from Port-au-Prince Politicians from Brooklyn St. Francis College alumni 21st-century New York (state) politicians