Eva Osorio

The Women’s Institute for Housing and Economic Development presented Eva Osorio with its first-ever Nancy Nye Award at the agency’s recent annual meeting.

Osorio is a 23-year veteran at Urban Edge Housing Development Corporation, a community development corporation (CDC) that works to develop and sustain stable, healthy and diverse communities in Jamaica Plain, Roxbury and other surrounding communities. Urban Edge focuses primarily on affordable housing development, small business assistance and homeowner education.

Osorio began her career as an administrative assistant, eventually working her way up through professional development training and advancement opportunities to the position of manager of homeownership services.

Now, Osorio guides prospective homebuyers through the often-dispiriting maze of first-time homebuyer programs and helps them access rehabilitation and de-leading loans. She has designed and teaches homebuyer education classes and financial fitness classes in both English and Spanish, reaching over 1,800 people. With Osorio’s assistance, over 500 local residents have realized their dreams of homeownership.

The Women’s Institute created the award in honor of Nancy Tippin Nye, a pioneering community development professional who passed away on Nov. 12, 2006.

Nye was a board member during the early years of the Women’s Institute, while also serving as the program director for the Boston office of the Local Support Initiative Collaborative. She developed lending and technical assistance programs aimed at increasing the presence and activity of CDCs in housing development.