Carol Naughton
President, Purpose Built Communities
Carol Naughton has been a leader in comprehensive community
revitalization for more than 20 years and was a founding staff member of
Purpose Built Communities. In her role as President, she is responsible for
leading the consulting teams that support revitalizations in 12 cities, as well
as the teams currently vetting opportunities in 35 additional cities, including
several in metro Atlanta. She ensures that clients are focusing their time and
resources on the highest impact activities in their respective neighborhoods
and serves as the primary public spokesperson for Purpose Built
Communities at conferences and events around the country. The work she
has led has been recognized as uniquely successful by many, including
Warren Buffett, Ben Bernanke, the White House Office of Neighborhood Revitalization, the Urban Land
Institute, Mutual of America, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, the Education Trust, the Low Income
Investment Fund, the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank and the Secretaries of the U.S. Departments
of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Education.
Previously, Ms. Naughton served as the Executive Director of the East Lake Foundation, the community
quarterback organization that developed and continues to implement the model of community
revitalization that Purpose Built Communities is charged with replicating around the country. In this role
she helped develop and nurture cross-sector relationships in wellness and education, including the first
public charter school in Atlanta. Under her leadership, the East Lake Foundation was recognized by the
Urban Land Institute as a Global Award of Excellence Winner in 2003.
Prior to joining the East Lake Foundation, she was General Counsel and Deputy Executive Director for
Legal and Nonprofit Affairs for the Atlanta Housing Authority where she served as a key member of the
leadership team that brought AHA from the brink of receivership to national recognition as a
sophisticated, progressive sponsor of affordable housing programs and community development. While
at AHA, Carol played a significant role in developing the legal and financial model for mixed income
housing.
Before joining AHA, Carol was an attorney with Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan’s real estate group, where
she primarily represented developers, lenders and asset managers. She is a member of the 2016 class of
Leadership Atlanta and is on the national steering committee of LOCUS. She is a graduate of the Emory
University School of Law and was Executive Editor of the Emory Law Journal.