Joanna Delson joined the board in June 2012. Joanna grew up in Yorkville and attended Brearley and the University of Southern California. Joanna and her husband, David Venderbush, live with their three children in a rowhouse they renovated on East 106th Street. Joanna has a background as a high school English teacher and administrator. For the last decade she has run her business, Space Management, which specializes in design and planning for small spaces.

Regarding her goals as a CIVITAS board member, Joanna said she “would like to see East Harlem come into its own and maintain mixed incomes and cultural diversity while improving the neighborhood’s general character” including less litter, more recycling and better air quality. Key issues also include convincing the City of New York to convert to cleaner fuels and better air quality standards. Joanna would also like to help get the word out about CIVITAS’s work in East Harlem and the Upper East Side. “I hope to be a board member who can support CIVITAS and its members in many ways,” she said. Joanna comes by her activism and passion for her community naturally. Morton Delson, her father, was a member of Community Board 8 between 1974-1982 and served as its chair. Her mother, Anna, was part of the original committee that created and saw the realization of the “pick-up-after-your-dog” laws.