Bob Guarasci
Birthdate: May 8, 1962
NJ Town Affiliation: Paterson
Robert F. (Bob) Guarasci was born on May 8, 1962 in Englewood, New Jersey. At the age of 8, Bob and his family moved to Fort Lee, where he would graduate from Fort Lee High School in 1980. Bob then attended George Washington University, where he served two terms as student body president, graduating in 1986.
In 1989, Bob volunteered for the campaign of Jim Florio, who would be elected Governor of New Jersey that November. Bob worked in the Florio Administration for four years, serving as Executive Assistant to the state’s Commissioner of Human Services. In that role, Bob worked on issues ranging from welfare reform to an expansion of community-based services for people with disabilities.
In 1994, Bob founded New Jersey Community Development Corporation (NJCDC), a community development and social service agency based in New Jersey’s third largest city, Paterson. Grounded in the notion that good people should join together to make a difference in the lives of our most vulnerable neighbors, NJCDC started with two employees and one program in 1994; it now employs 150+ people and has an annual operating budget in excess of $18 million.
NJCDC’s mission is to create opportunities to transform lives within the city of Paterson, where it serves 4,000+ children and families each day. NJCDC operates a variety of programs and services that include a preschool for inner-city children, a youth center, an AmeriCorps national service program, a county-wide youth mental health initiative, and a large array of youth development programs, many of which are located within Paterson schools. In addition, NJCDC has invested over $120 million in brick and mortar projects, largely throughout Paterson’s Great Falls neighborhood, including 200+ units of affordable and supportive housing.
In the area of supportive housing, NJCDC provides apartments with on-site services for a number of special needs groups, including those who are homeless with a mental illness, people with developmental disabilities, and youth leaving the state’s foster care system.
Additionally, Bob and NJCDC founded the Community Charter School of Paterson, with 900 students in grades K-8. In founding the school, Bob believed that schools should serve as community hubs, that they should integrate and draw upon community resources, and that student achievement is closely linked with engaging and strengthening families.
Bob’s current professional interests include the revitalization of Paterson and the Great Falls Historic District, place-based and resident-led community development initiatives, the creation of supportive housing for individuals with disabilities, comprehensive youth development programs for at-risk youth, and the intersection of healthcare and community development.
Bob currently serves on a variety of governing boards, including as a gubernatorial appointee to the boards of William Paterson University and the Paterson Housing Authority. Additionally, Bob serves on the boards of the Paterson Prep Charter School, the Health Coalition of Passaic County, and is President of the Paterson Charter School Roundtable. Bob is also co-founder of the Paterson Alliance, a consortium of over 100 non-profit organizations serving Paterson residents.
Bob is a resident of the city of Paterson.