Huntsville Housing Authority
200 Washington Street
Huntsville, AL 35801
(256)532-5623 /  

Carlen is a 2004 graduate of the University of Alabama School of Law and received a BS in Management in 2001 at the University of Alabama where she received the Award for Excellence in Management in both 2000 and 2001. She is the director of Real Estate Development with the Huntsville Housing Authority where she is responsible for the management and administration of the Real Estate Development Department including creation and oversight of modernization programs, real estate acquisitions, financing and development techniques, government contract, and business strategy. Her job also requires her to manage the $3.5M annual department budget and supervise eight staff members including Construction/Facilities Manager, Development Coordinators and field staff.

Carlen served as a committee chair with the Junior League of Huntsville for numerous years and received the Provisional of the Year Award in 2006. She is a board member of the Huntsville Symphony Orchestra Guild, and has served as an executive committee member and president of First Circle of the Huntsville Symphony Orchestra. Carlen held the position of Area Recruitment Information Chair for Chi Omega Alumnae for Huntsville and Madison County. She was a speaker for NAHRO Leadership at All Levels (National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials) in 2011.

The attorney who recommended Carlen said, “In my opinion, it would be difficult to find a more suitable candidate, I have observed Carlen in her role as a daughter, mother and wife. Her character in each of these roles exemplifies that of the highest order. Her position of an attorney working with the government, in a rather independent manner as she does, brings to the table a unique perspective. The projects that she has worked on for many years need servant leadership. She projects that trait. The bar would profit from this heterogeneous mix. Her contribution to the Butterfly Project here in Huntsville is a tremendous example of her ingenuity and leadership ability. The success of this project is smothered with servant leadership. As Ms. Williams progresses through her life, she will continue to contribute to society’s needs on a ‘have not’ basis. The bar would benefit greatly from her organizational skills and she would likewise, through this forum, hone her ability to help others. I recently worked with Ms. Williams in a fund raising event. The event was well organized and well executed, much so as a result of Carlen’s organizational skills. I experienced firsthand Ms. Williams placing herself as a servant first, possessing great responsibility in the world around her, and achieving goals that result in improving the community. She is a good listener, has empathy; is a good problem solver; is aware and intellectual. She can conceptualize and persuade in a positive manner. She is a steward and committed to the personal growth of other people and has been very actively involved in building a better community.”

In her own words Carlen said, “I have always valued service and the impact targeted efforts can have on a community. When I was introduced to affordable housing in law school, I was inspired by the opportunities for urban reinvigoration through programs such as HOPE VI. Comprehensive redevelopment, with equal parts focus on early childhood education, family self-sufficiency and safe, secure housing, is the key to a vibrant, sustainable community – and the best opportunity for families living in public housing to move ‘up and out.’ In 2005, Huntsville Housing Authority (HHA) owned and operated approximately 1,800 units of public housing in the inner-city. With the intense concentration of housing in the downtown area, and the generational cycle of poverty inherent in clustered housing, I was commissioned to develop and implement a comprehensive redevelopment strategy for our public housing portfolio. Councill Courts, one of the largest single pieces of developable land in the city center with a $26 per square foot price tag, was chosen as the first site for redevelopment. Six years later, redevelopment of the site is almost complete. All families were relocated to communities of their choice by the end of 2009 and continue to benefit from quality schools in safe and secure neighborhoods as well as intensive case management to ensure long-term family success in their new environment. Construction of a state-of-the-art 86-unit senior housing facility will be completed by November of this year. This building is the first of its kind in Huntsville – both seniors receiving public assistance and those who do not will live together and benefit from adjacency to quality medical services at Huntsville Hospital. In addition, approximately 15 remaining acres are under contract for private development; uses include a Publix grocery store, a bank and more than 150 units of market rate housing. Building consensus required more than compromise – it required a value of and response to both the business and human perspective. A unilateral approach would have yielded success in one perspective, but at great expense of the other. I have found that this experience has had a profound impact on my interactions with others. For years, I took for granted my own empowerment from my education, strong family support and a safe and secure living environment. Communication effectively with people similar to me is second-nature. Communicating with, and more often leading, people that are so different in their personal experiences and expectations have demanded my best. This sensitivity to perspective is my most important contribution to the legal profession. My understanding and appreciation for perspective has also affected my impact on my community. In school, I learned that the crux of any organization, and therefore its accomplishments, are its people. Without a motivated workforce, sustained success is difficult to achieve. I believe this mantra holds true not only in the professional workplace, but also in the dynamic volunteer environment. As the largest women’s volunteer organization in the city, the Junior League of Huntsville (JLH) supports more than 10 community projects financially and through commitment of its members’ time. Early in my first year of membership, I presented a project to the JLH leadership designed to positively impact the lives of underserved teenage girls. Designed as a simple act of kindness to lift the spirits of deserving girls in our community, the Butterfly Project incorporated a Prom dress drive and boutique as well as the life-transforming provision of college scholarships. Butterfly Project met a need in the community, but even more importantly it inspired the women of the JLH to commit their time, financial resources and heart to high school seniors left otherwise neglected by the volunteer community. Our project was a tremendous success – our dedicated volunteers raised more than $50,000 in cash and in-kind donations and we opened our first Boutique to more than 60 deserving girls. In recognition of the project’s success, I was humbled to receive Provisional of the Year, the first (and only) time this award has been given. Butterfly Project has grown immensely over the years and now offers more than 10- scholarships to deserving nominees and provides prom shopping to more than 120 girls each year. Because of our commitment to creating a lasting framework with which this project could be successful for many years, Butterfly Project has transitioned from a new member project to a general membership project, and now benefits from the human and financial capital of the largest women’s organization in the city. Whether it’s a resident living in public housing empowered through education or an insecure high school girl inspired by recognition and appreciation of her personal strength, creating individual opportunity is a cornerstone to personal growth and, eventually, society’s moral sustainability. I have seen the impact that impassioned volunteers can have on someone’s life and I hope to learn through participation in the Leadership Forum ways that I may continue to positively impact my community, my state and my profession through the human perspective of one individual at a time.”