Maxine Griffith

Maxine Griffith currently serves as Chief Infrastructure Officer at Trinity Church Wall Street, an historic church with significant real estate holdings. There she oversees physical planning, development and facilities management for the church and its associated mission properties over three states.

Prior to her position at Trinity and reporting to Columbia University’s president, Griffith served for 15 years, as Executive Vice President | Senior Advisor to the President. She coordinated planning and served as owner’s representative for the University’s award-winning, 22 building, 17-acre Manhattanville campus. In addition, she negotiated an historic Community Benefits Agreement with representatives of the surrounding Harlem neighborhoods.

Griffith has served as Executive Director of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission and Secretary (Deputy Mayor) for Strategic Planning. During her time there, the Commission won two national American Planning Association awards. She worked at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), first as the Secretary’s Regional Director for New York and New Jersey, and then as Assistant Deputy Secretary. She has also served for 6 years on the New York City Planning Commission.

Maxine Griffith currently serves on the executive board of the Regional Plan Association, the board of Claremont-Lincoln University and of Hypothekids, an organization providing underserved students with hands-on science education.

Maxine Griffith was born in Harlem. She earned a Master of Architecture degree from the University of California, Berkeley. She has completed certificates in urban planning, real property finance and affordable housing development from the Graduate School of Design, Harvard University.

She has been elected by her peers to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Certified Planners. In 2022 she was awarded the Champion of Architecture Award by the American Institute of Architects, New York.