LEADERSHIP
Maria Torres
President & Chief Operating Officer
Maria Torres is the President, Co-founder, and COO of THE POINT Community Development Corporation in the Hunts Point neighborhood of The Bronx. Ms. Torres was born and raised in Valley Stream, NY. She attended Cornell University and received a Bachelor's of Science degree in 1993 from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
Following graduation, she pursued a career in community development in Hunts Point. In 1993, she launched the Neighborhood Internship Bank for at-risk youth, the first employment service of its kind in the South Bronx, while working for The Seneca Center Inc. Ms. Torres also established La Marqueta, an outdoor community market aimed at lowering the barriers to the marketplace for neighborhood entrepreneurs.
In September of 1994, Ms. Torres along with Paul Lipson, Mildred Ruiz, and Steven Sapp founded THE POINT Community Development Corporation.
In 2018, Ms. Torres was named on City & State magazine’s 2018 Bronx Power 50. In 2011, she was the recipient of The President’s Award by the Women’s Caucus for Art. Also that year, she was named one of the 25 Most Influential Women by the Bronx Times and honored by the Audubon Society at their Fall Roost.
In addition to her duties at THE POINT, Ms. Torres serves as Chair of the Economic and Municipal Services Committee for Bronx Community Board 2.
Contact Maria: mtorres@thepoint.org
Barbara Alicea
Managing Director
Barbara joined The POINT CDC in 2019 as the Director of Arts and Education to lead the team responsible for the overall strategy and implementation of our arts and educational programs. She works with over 30 staff members who oversee our After School and Teen Arts and Advocacy Programs.
Her role is to also support our teaching artists to expand their pedagogical arts practice and promote arts education for young people. In 2023, she got promoted to the Managing Director role, overseeing agency-wide implementation of the South Bronx Community Resiliency Agenda.
She brings over 10 years experience of working in non-profits and with City Agencies such as Administration for Children Services (ACS) as Community Coordinator for Early Care Education and in the NYC Dept of Education as Program Officer Evaluator.
Barbara is committed to providing opportunities for creative thinking and is passionate about fostering courage in others to embrace and nurture their creative self-esteem through project-based learning that takes into account individual learning styles.
Contact Barbara: balicea@thepoint.org
