Rob De Leon outlines priorities as interim CEO of the Fortune Society
May 04, 2026 | Bronx County/City, New York
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Rob De Leon, the newly appointed interim president and CEO of the Fortune Society, said he will focus the organization’s work on housing stability and mental-health care for people returning from incarceration while sharpening how the nonprofit reports its impact.
De Leon, speaking on the Social Justice Forum, described his appointment as personal and said it "is an honor for me to lead the organization that has helped me to shape my leadership." He said the Fortune Society combines direct services and policy advocacy for people affected by the criminal legal system.
The Fortune Society, De Leon said, was founded in 1967 to educate the public about reentry and has grown into a citywide service provider offering addiction treatment, an on-site clinic, mental-health services, employment-readiness programming and transitional and permanent supportive housing. He said the organization now operates nine locations and that he was speaking from a 65,000-square-foot space in Long Island City, Queens, that houses several program offerings.
Asked about trends he is seeing in 2026, De Leon pointed to two recurring problems: stable housing and people with mental illness. "There are, you know, little less than 7,000 people" on Rikers Island, he said, and "more than half of them are people with an m designation," which he described as a history of mental illness; he argued those conditions reflect underinvestment in front-end supports that might prevent system involvement.
On his priorities as interim CEO, De Leon said the organization will emphasize continuity and stability for staff and participants and "begin to report on that impact in a very, very, in a way that's really palatable, that's understandable to anyone." He framed that reporting as an effort to show both social and economic returns when people move from being system-involved to contributing to their communities.
De Leon also welcomed the recent appointment of Stanley Richards to lead the Department of Corrections, calling it "historic" and saying he believes Richards’ background and values "give us hope that we'll be moving forward and seeing a new era of ... how people are treated." He added that authenticity—"you have to be the same person in every room"—was a quality he planned to carry into his own leadership.
He closed by inviting listeners to learn more or get involved with the Fortune Society at fortunesociety.org and on social media, noting financial contributions and volunteer time both help sustain services such as feeding programs and clinical care.
The interview concluded with a sign-off and a teaser that the Social Justice Forum would return after a brief break to discuss climate justice.
De Leon, speaking on the Social Justice Forum, described his appointment as personal and said it "is an honor for me to lead the organization that has helped me to shape my leadership." He said the Fortune Society combines direct services and policy advocacy for people affected by the criminal legal system.
The Fortune Society, De Leon said, was founded in 1967 to educate the public about reentry and has grown into a citywide service provider offering addiction treatment, an on-site clinic, mental-health services, employment-readiness programming and transitional and permanent supportive housing. He said the organization now operates nine locations and that he was speaking from a 65,000-square-foot space in Long Island City, Queens, that houses several program offerings.
Asked about trends he is seeing in 2026, De Leon pointed to two recurring problems: stable housing and people with mental illness. "There are, you know, little less than 7,000 people" on Rikers Island, he said, and "more than half of them are people with an m designation," which he described as a history of mental illness; he argued those conditions reflect underinvestment in front-end supports that might prevent system involvement.
On his priorities as interim CEO, De Leon said the organization will emphasize continuity and stability for staff and participants and "begin to report on that impact in a very, very, in a way that's really palatable, that's understandable to anyone." He framed that reporting as an effort to show both social and economic returns when people move from being system-involved to contributing to their communities.
De Leon also welcomed the recent appointment of Stanley Richards to lead the Department of Corrections, calling it "historic" and saying he believes Richards’ background and values "give us hope that we'll be moving forward and seeing a new era of ... how people are treated." He added that authenticity—"you have to be the same person in every room"—was a quality he planned to carry into his own leadership.
He closed by inviting listeners to learn more or get involved with the Fortune Society at fortunesociety.org and on social media, noting financial contributions and volunteer time both help sustain services such as feeding programs and clinical care.
The interview concluded with a sign-off and a teaser that the Social Justice Forum would return after a brief break to discuss climate justice.
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