Sonya M. Tilghman is the Executive Director of Hazelwood Initiative, where she has served since January 2016. She brings more than 25 years of progressive leadership experience in community economic development across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. Throughout her career, Sonya has built a reputation as a strategic and mission-driven leader with deep expertise in nonprofit governance, affordable housing finance, commercial and mixed-use development, and the management of complex grant, loan, and CRA compliance programs.
Before joining Hazelwood Initiative, Sonya spent three years as an independent consultant supporting community development financial institutions, public agencies, and municipalities. Her earlier career includes senior roles at Fifth Third Bank, where she served as the CRA Manager for the Pittsburgh market, and Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania, where she was the regional commercial real estate lender focused on low- and moderate-income communities. She also held key positions with the Urban Redevelopment Authority and the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh, as well as with several community development corporations. Across these roles, she gained extensive experience with CDBG, HOME, LIHTC, NMTC, and other public financing programs that shape urban revitalization.
Sonya’s commitment to strengthening communities extends well beyond her professional work. She is an experienced and dedicated nonprofit trustee, currently serving on the boards of Program to Aid Citizen Enterprise (Treasurer), City of Bridges Community Land Trust, and Rising Tides Hazelwood. She was an inaugural advisory board member for the City of Pittsburgh’s Housing Opportunity Fund, and she remains an active volunteer and member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. In 2022, she was appointed by Governor Tom Wolf to serve as a judge on the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Court of Judicial Discipline, and in 2025, she was appointed to the Allegheny County Health Departme