Raul Russi

Raul Russi is the President of Acacia Network. With an approximate annual operating budget of $500 million and assets totaling $900 million, Acacia Network comprises more than 100 affiliates and over 2,700 employees across six states and Puerto Rico, and serves more 150,000 individuals every year through five principal programmatic areas, mainly Primary and Behavioral Health, Transitional Housing, Affordable Housing, Community Development and Social Enterprises. Raul’s vision and leadership carried the organization during a critical period of growth, paving the way for it to become one of the leading human services organizations in New York City and the largest Hispanic-led nonprofit in the State. An expert in mergers, acquisitions, and affiliations, Raul created a model that is now being utilized as a gold standard across the social services field, while preserving critical community assets that would have otherwise been lost.

Originally from Patillas, Puerto Rico, Raul migrated to Buffalo, New York at the age of 12 with his parents and eight siblings. As a young Puerto Rican living in a community that lacked diversity, he became keenly aware at an early age about the importance of helping underserved communities gain a “seat at the table.” Raul became a police officer in Buffalo during the 1970s, at a time when Latinos and African Americans were grossly underrepresented in the police force. He went on to become one of the most decorated officers in the history of the department and, after getting shot in the line of duty, subsequently held different leadership and Cabinet-level positions in the public sector, including Chairman of the New York State Parole Board and CEO of the Division of Parole during Governor Mario Cuomo’s administration, as well as Sheriff of New York and Commissioner of the NYC Department of Probation during the administration of Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.

During his years on the police force, Raul was actively involved in the nonprofit sector, playing a key role in the affiliation of multiple Hispanic organizations in the Buffalo area. In 1973, he created the Consortium of Spanish Speaking Organizations, the first full-service agency headed by a Puerto Rican/Latino in Buffalo, followed by the founding of the Western New York Hispanic and Friends Civic Association. He provided the leadership and spearheaded the creation of Western New York’s first residential substance abuse treatment program, Horizon Village, and later incorporated and chaired the board of La Alternativa, Buffalo’s first Hispanic-based substance abuse prevention program. He then merged La Alternativa with two other organizations to create Buffalo’s largest Hispanic Organization, Hispanos Unidos de Buffalo, which joined Acacia Network as an affiliate in 2011. These early experiences with the affiliation model taught him that there is strength in numbers, especially when it comes to serving and representing minority communities.

In 2001, he became the Executive Director of Basics, Inc., and subsequently spearheaded the affiliation with Promesa, Inc. in 2009, which led to the creation of Acacia Network. Under his visionary leadership, Acacia Network grew to become one of the largest Hispanic-led human services nonprofits in the Nation. He further expanded Acacia Network’s portfolio and footprint by launching several for-profit ventures that aimed to serve as revenue streams for the nonprofit arm.

After serving at the helm of the organization as CEO for 20 years, it was announced in January 2022 that he would step down as CEO and continue to serve as President, in charge of overseeing critical strategic priorities, including the expansion of Acacia’s affordable housing portfolio.

Today, Raul feels that his vision has been nearly realized, as Acacia enters a new phase of growth and expansion. He continues to work tirelessly to open doors and advocate for Puerto Ricans and Latinos at large, in order to ensure that the next generation continues this important work to reinvest in our communities.