ISAAC ADLERSTEIN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Isaac Adlerstein became Executive Director of Broadway Community in December 2021 at just 23 years old, becoming one of the youngest leaders of a major homeless service agency in New York City. Since he stepped into the role, the now 43-year-old organization has doubled its revenue, expanded its services, and positioned itself as a citywide model for holistic, trauma-informed care—providing meals, shelter, medical services, case management, and employment support to hundreds of New Yorkers in crisis.

Isaac’s passion for serving people experiencing homelessness began in high school and deepened during a transformative gap year at the Interfaith Nutrition Network (The INN), Long Island’s largest homeless services provider. There, he volunteered in the agency’s flagship soup kitchen and also helped Guests obtain housing, ID, employment, and access to services—an experience that fundamentally shaped his life’s mission.

While earning his degree at Johns Hopkins University, Isaac continued this work on the front lines in Baltimore. He volunteered in the soup kitchen and computer lab at Paul’s Place, mentored high school students, and served as a policy intern at the Baltimore Mayor’s Office of Homeless Services—where he helped draft emergency housing policies.

Before joining Broadway Community, Isaac directed volunteer services at Commonpoint Queens, managing over 1,500 volunteers annually across food pantries, senior centers, and afterschool programs. He also spearheaded the agency’s COVID-19 community vaccination efforts at the start of the vaccine rollout, supervising a team of over a dozen volunteers who helped more than 2,000 vulnerable Queens residents get inoculated.

In 2023, while leading Broadway Community, Isaac was tapped to also serve as Interim Director of Asylum Seeker & Homeless Shelter Services at NYDIS, part of the city’s $75 million emergency shelter initiative. Modeled in part after Broadway Community’s shelter program, the initiative launched dozens of faith-based shelters for asylum seekers. Isaac helped bring the first three shelters off the ground—authoring the operations manual, training staff, and coordinating with HPD, DOB, FDNY, and NYCEM. He led this work while continuing full-time at Broadway Community, demonstrating his capacity to lead during moments of urgent citywide need.

In addition to his executive leadership, Isaac served as Chair of the Emergency Shelter Network (ESN) from 2023 to 2024, guiding the coalition’s work to empower houses of worship in sheltering New Yorkers experiencing homelessness. Since 2025, he has served as a member of Manhattan Community Board 7, where he sits on both the Health and Human Services Committee and the Business & Consumer Issues Committee. He also serves on the Board of the Manhattan Valley Development Corporation (MVDC), helping to advance community-based development in the Upper West Side and Harlem.