Executive Director of the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development
Seema Agnani (she/hers) serves as Executive Director of the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (National CAPACD – pronounced “capacity”), a coalition of 100 community-based organizations that advocate for and organize in low-income Asian American and Pacific Islander communities towards a vision of economic and social justice for all.
She has more than 25 years of experience in community development, capacity building, and immigrant rights. She was a founder and Executive Director of Chhaya CDC working in the South Asian community of New York City, leading the organization during the great recession and the aftermath of the attacks of 9/11.
She began her community development career as a project manager with Asian Americans for Equality. Later, she served as lead coordinator of the Fund for New Citizens at The New York Community Trust, a donor collaborative focused on immigrant rights in New York City.
Seema is originally from the Chicago area where her parents emigrated from India.