TheMReport — News and strategies for the evolving mortgage marketplace.
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38 | M R EP O RT Cerita Battles Head of Affordable Lending, JPMorgan Chase At a time when the national attention has been forced to consider long-simmering problems of racial disparities across the socioeconomic spectrum, Cerita Battles' work with JPMorgan Chase has taken on a greater sense of urgency. Battles is responsible for leading the company's efforts to formulate and implement strategies to grow and strengthen homeownership opportunities among people of color and low- to-moderate income households. This mission involves both an external outreach to builders and real estate professionals to put a new focus on these often-overlooked demographics and to potential borrowers through financial education and homeownership counseling and an internal mission to solidify JPMorgan Chase's commitment to diversity in hiring of sales staff. "African Americans need to have the confidence and knowledge to recognize that they can be homeowners, and that a lender ... truly wants to help them meet their home- financing needs," Battles said in an interview with the NNPA Newswire. This year has been particularly challenging for Battles' and her mission, as the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a disproportionately high toll on nonwhites. Despite the stress and turmoil brought by the pandemic, Battle pushes ahead to ensure her work is not derailed. "It's imperative that we understand the impact the coronavirus economic crisis could have on certain segments of the population, especially minority communities," she said. "And we know the more we position ourselves from a leadership perspective to serve people in need, the more we can help them navigate and rebound in these unprecedented times." Leisha Delgado Owner, Hello Solutions When Leisha Delgado launched Hello Solutions in 2017, she had a considerable understanding of the mortgage servicing industry through a diverse career path that included work as VP of Client Development at the technology and outsourcing provider Assure360, as a Relationship Manager at the software provider Clarify, and as an Account/Project Manager at Nationwide Title Clearing, where she served as a liaison for top lenders and loan servicers to improve loan default performance. With Hello Solutions, Delgado focuses on connecting default servicers and investors with high-quality, high-performance attorney firms. Her company's website promises to create relationships "based on integrity, operational excellence, and customer centricity." For her work in the servicing sectors, Delgado has been named one of the "Top 25 Women of Law" in both 2018 and 2019 by DS News. Outside of mortgage servicing, Delgado is the founder and driving force behind Puerto Rico Project Hope, a relief-focused nonprofit that she launched after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico. Her initiative resulted in the creation of "virtual hope boxes" that included water filtration systems, solar-powered cell phone chargers, batteries, food, and first aid for the beleaguered Puerto Rican residents who were left without power in the hurricane's aftermath. Delgado has also been a source of inspiration in speaking openly about her fight against Stage 3 breast cancer. Now in remission, she declared that cancer would not derail her life. "I decided I wouldn't allow it to take away the things I could control: my business and my happiness," she said. The DIVERSITY & INCLUSION Award Celebrating those who have successfully broken barriers and helped lead the charge in developing diverse workplace cultures by fostering inclusive and welcoming environments for people of every color, creed, and gender to prosper and achieve over adversity (minimum 10 years' consecutive industry experience). Finalists An MReport Issue Featuring Five Star Conference's Keystone Awards Finalists