AJ Yazzie

AZ I See It

Growing up on the Navajo reservation, I loved playing basketball. Called “Rez Ball,” Navajos are known to play a fierce game. I learned a lot from playing ball.

As a player, you have to be quick, determined, and practice daily. As part of a team, you learn accountability, teamwork, diligence and to never give up. A lot of people ask, “Why are folks on Navajo so good at basketball?” It is because we never give up.

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I joined Navajo Housing Authority (NHA) in 2007 when it was in complete disarray. In my first six months as CEO, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development slapped the organization with various program violations – the doors to NHA would be closed if change did not quickly occur.

I could have easily decided that it was too much and walked away. But that is not me; challenges inspire me, I am a team player and took my responsibilities seriously.

We've instituted major reforms

The new administration team assessed the entire organization. We conducted a forensic review of our finances and contracts, identified internal control weaknesses and determined the full extent of what we were facing. Field offices were still manually tracking tenant payments, builders weren’t meeting expectations, homes weren’t built to code and staff was demoralized by legal actions being pursued against NHA’s former leadership.

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As dim as the situation may have seemed, we knew that NHA’s dedicated employees continued to work hard to serve our people. We could not give up on them and we could not give up on our people.

After our assessment and analysis we instituted major reforms. We implemented internal controls ensuring contractors were kept to strict quality standards. We streamlined procurement and contracting in order to efficiently execute large-scale development.

After the 2007 NHA reorganization, new leadership (including the Board of Commissioners) created a path to address large-scale housing development and efficiently use the allocated federal housing funds that accumulated during the previous 10 years.

How we're planning large-scale housing

From 2007-2013, NHA launched several initiatives to lay the groundwork to develop large-scale sustainable housing. First, the organization assessed its current housing need on the Navajo Nation. From 2009 to 2011, NHA completed a comprehensive scientifically based housing needs study for the Navajo Nation.

Simultaneously, NHA built a land information management system that provides a planning tool and resource to produce floodplain maps.

NHA took the planning process further and began a monumental effort to complete a sustainable community master plan for each Navajo Nation community that would aid in large-scale housing development. Finally, NHA expanded its homeownership program to include financing options for individuals/families with low, moderate and high income levels.

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NHA has had challenges. We are working to rectify those issues and ensure sustained development for quality and affordable homes for the Navajo community.

If this were basketball, we are starting the third quarter and our team is making a comeback. The player mentality has kicked in and our team is continuing the fight to build quality and affordable homes for our people. Our team needs strong backup from the bench (leadership) at all levels – helping and rooting each other on. Without that, we might as well throw in the towel to naysayers, unscrupulous politicians and outsiders' hidden agendas.

This is like Rez Ball and our teams always make the comeback.

Aneva “AJ” Yazzie, a full-blood member of the Navajo (Dine) Nation with 34 years’ experience in development and construction of affordable housing, is the CEO of the Navajo Housing Authority. Email her at ajyazzie@hooghan.org; on Twitter, @hooghanorg.