During his 40-year career (1979 – 2019) at Community Access in New York City, Steve has been committed to improving health outcomes and advancing the rights of people with mental illness.

In 1993, Steve recruited Howie the Harp to lead the agency’s efforts in transforming its workforce, with a goal of having at least 51% peer staff. In 1995, Steve and Howie created a peer training institute to prepare formerly homeless and incarcerated people with mental health concerns to pursue careers in the human services field. Named in Howie’s honor, the Howie the Harp Advocacy Center has trained over 1,200 people and has been replicated in four Dutch cities.

In 1994, CA pioneered an integrated supportive housing model that blends affordable units for families and units for formerly homeless people recovering from mental illness. The agency now operates nearly 2,000 units in 24 developments.

In 2012, Community Access was the lead organizer of Communities for Crisis Intervention Teams, an advocacy campaign that has led to Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training for 12,000 NYPD officers and the formation in 2018 of the Mayor's Task Force on Crisis Prevention and Response, which issued 15 recommendations to improve crisis services and to reduce the use of police officers and 911 calls.

In 2013, CA opened the first peer-staffed crisis respite center in NYC. With 40 guests per month, staying an average 7 days, the respite center breaks the cycle of repeated ER visits and overuse of psychiatric hospitals for individuals in an emotional crisis.

Steve retired as CEO of Community Access in June 2019 and is now supporting a range of mental health housing and advocacy initiatives throughout the U.S. and abroad. An avid proponent of human-centered design, Steve hopes to assist agencies and governments plan and implement social initiatives that are truly informed by user needs.

Learn more about Steve Coe on his LinkedIn page.