Bryan names Adrienne Williams-Octalien to lead Office of Disaster Recovery

Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. on Jan. 31, 2019, named Adrienne L. Williams-Octalien director of the Office of Disaster Recovery under the Virgin Islands Public Finance Authority.

Government House said Williams-Octalien previously served as executive director of the Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority and had worked with the Federal Emergency Management Agency since November 2017. Her most recent FEMA roles were Hazard Mitigation Branch Director and Program Operations Sector Chief for the Public Assistance, Hazard Mitigation, and Environmental and Historic Preservation programs.

Government House said Williams-Octalien also previously served as regional asset manager and director of the Housing Choice Voucher programs at the Virgin Islands Housing Authority. It said that during her tenure at the Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority, she led development of seven homeownership and rental communities across the territory, creating 332 housing opportunities with $69 million in development costs.

The administration said the Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority administers the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery program, which had a total allocation of $1.8 billion for housing, infrastructure and economic revitalization recovery initiatives, including $779 million designated for mitigation activities.

Williams-Octalien holds a bachelor of arts degree in mass communications and a master's degree in urban affairs from Norfolk State University in Virginia, according to Government House.

Official source: https://www.vi.gov/governor-bryan-taps-adrienne-williams-octalien-to-lead-office-of-disaster-recovery/