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Ursula Burns

Brief Biography:

Born in 1958, Burns was raised by a single mother in the Baruch Houses, a housing project in New York City.1 Both of her parents were Panamanian immigrants.1

Her mother, Olga Burns, ran a home day-care center, took in ironing, cleaned other people’s homes, and did whatever combination of work was available to keep her children fed, clothed, and enrolled in schools worth attending. She scraped together enough to send Ursula to Cathedral High School, a Roman Catholic preparatory school in Manhattan.2

Education:

She attended and graduated Cathedral High School, a Catholic all-girls school on East 56th Street in New York. After high school, Burns attended Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute (now New York University Tandon School of Engineering) where in 1980 she earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.1 She later earned a master’s degree from Columbia University.

Career & Achievements:

Burns began her journey with Xerox as a summer intern in 1980 and officially joined the company a year later, following the completion of her master’s degree from Columbia University. She worked in various roles in product development and planning at the company.1

In 2007, Burns assumed the role of president of Xerox. In July 2009 she was named CEO, succeeding Mulcahy. The first Black woman CEO to head a Fortune 500 company, Burns was also the first woman to succeed another woman as head of a Fortune 500 company.1

Under President Barack Obama, Burns led the White House national program on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) from 2009 to 2016. Additionally, she was chairwoman of the President’s Export Council from 2015 to 2016.1

In 2014, Forbes rated Burns as the 22nd most powerful woman in the world.1

Legacy:

Burns released her memoir, Where You Are Is Not Who You Are, in June 2021. She writes about growing up in poverty, lessons learned from her mother, becoming the CEO of Xerox, parenting, loss, grief and managing success.3

Ursula Burns remains the most prominently cited famous person from Baruch Houses, representing an inspiring “rags-to-riches” story of rising from public housing to leading one of America’s largest corporations. Her story is often highlighted as an example of how personal possibilities are not defined by one’s beginnings.

The Bernard M. Baruch Houses (commonly known as Baruch Houses) on the Lower East Side of Manhattan is the largest NYCHA development in the borough. It has been home to several individuals who achieved national prominence in business, music, and community leadership.1

Below are notable people who grew up in or are closely associated with Baruch Houses:

Business and Corporate Leadership12

  • Ursula M. Burns345
    • Career: Business Executive (Former CEO of Xerox)4
    • Brief Info: Perhaps the most famous alumna of Baruch Houses, Burns made history in 2009 by becoming the first African-American woman to serve as the CEO of a Fortune 500 company. She was raised by a single mother in the development and frequently credits her upbringing there with giving her the resilience and drive to succeed in the corporate world. She also served as a leader for President Obama’s STEM education program.

Music and Entertainment89

  • Downtown Dion13
    • Career: Rapper and Songwriter
    • Brief Info: Born and raised in Baruch Houses, Dion is a prominent figure in the modern New York hip-hop scene. His music often references his upbringing in the “Downtown” (Lower East Side) area and the Baruch development. Before his music career took off, he was a well-known local basketball talent on the LES courts.
  • Leaf
    • Career: Rapper and Singer89
    • Brief Info: A rising star in the hip-hop and R&B world, Leaf has spoken in interviews about her roots in Baruch Houses, where she began freestyling with her cousins as a child. She is known for her female-empowerment themes and has been signed to Fool’s Gold Records.
  • China Mac (Notable association)14
    • Career: Rapper and Activist
    • Brief Info: While he is a general Lower East Side figure, China Mac is famously linked to Baruch Houses through high-profile events, including a 2018 rooftop music video shoot at the development that resulted in a massive police response and 44 arrests. He has since become a prominent activist against Asian-American hate.

Community Leadership and Activism

  • Jasmin Sanchez1516
    • Career: Community Activist and Political Candidate1516
    • Brief Info: A lifelong resident of Baruch Houses, Sanchez is a well-known neighborhood advocate. She founded the LES Mutual Aid network during the COVID-19 pandemic and ran for the New York State Assembly (65th District) to represent public housing tenants at the state level.
  • Roberto Napoleon617
    • Career: Community Leader1819
    • Brief Info: Napoleon was a fixture of the Baruch community for over 45 years.20 As the long-time President of the Baruch Houses Tenant Association, he was the primary voice for thousands of residents, fighting for repairs, safety, and resources until his passing in 2020. He is widely considered a “legend” of the development’s history.
  • Daisy Paez
    • Career: District Leader and Community Advocate
    • Brief Info: Growing up as one of nine children in Baruch Houses, Paez became a prominent local political figure and District Leader. She is frequently cited as a “community champion” for her work in tenant rights and local youth programs.

Namesake Note

It is worth noting that the development is named after Bernard M. Baruch (1870–1965), a famous financier and political advisor to six U.S. presidents.52122 While he did not grow up in the public housing project (it was built in his honor in 1959), his father, Dr. Simon Baruch, was a pioneer in public health who established some of the city’s first public baths near the site.