Chris Johnson, Executive Director
Chris is a long-time community advocate deeply committed to supporting young people. He has been actively involved in youth work since the early 1990s.

Throughout the years, Chris has consistently accomplished change through organizing campaigns and grassroots coalitions. A lifetime of outreach and cultivation of personal and professional relationships has placed Chris at the hub of a vast human network of talents and resources. His ability to connect key individuals, concerned groups and community leaders has allowed him to create and support stronger collectives empowered to make measurable social and political change.

In his most recent endeavor, Chris focused on providing greater opportunities for Brooklyn youth as the founder and executive director of the Horizons Leadership Project (Horizons).  This is a return to full time youth work after more than a decade working as a community organizer & program coordinator for local and national social justice organizations.

Chris’ academic background includes a major in history and minors in economics & political science at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. After college, he originally co-founded the Horizons Youth Program in South Brooklyn and served as the executive director. This all-volunteer project for teens provided free programs in the arts, athletics, academics, and cultural & social awareness for over four hundred participants annually.

Chris’ commitment to equal opportunity and social justice can also be seen in his service as a board member to numerous organizations such as the American Civil Rights Education Services and the Northeast Brooklyn Housing Development Corp., as well as his volunteer organization of groups of concerned New Yorkers who traveled to Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina to assist residents in salvaging their homes.

Chris has always strongly believed in the importance of involving young people in his work and increasing their awareness of important issues that directly affect their lives. He strives to make a difference in the lives of young adults as he recognizes others have done for him.

The driving force behind Chris’ work is an unshakable belief that social and racial justice is possible. In his role as a community advocate he provides a voice for those who too often go unheard, but his ultimate goal is to have individuals know that they have the power to enact change in their communities and in their lives.