China Boak Terrell, CEO


An alumna of Johns Ho
pkins University and a former foster mom, China Boak Terrell has a blend of community and corporate experience and demonstrated leadership in guiding teams in building thriving communities.

With more than 15 years of experience in the private and public sectors, Ms. Boak Terrell has served as a corporate lawyer leading multi-million dollar transactions; business developer; liaison and advisor to agency heads, elected officials, and corporate leadership team members; and General Counsel for the District of Columbia’s legislative committee on human services.

Since joining ACT as CEO in 2016, Ms. Boak Terrell has raised $15 million for the Baltimore Pumphouse project and completed Phase 1, which included extensive environmental remediation, site work, and the opening of the first campus building. Under Ms. Boak Terrell’s guidance, ACT has completed pre-development for all phases of the Baltimore Pumphouse; and completed Phase 2 in September 2019, which showcases the campus’s first rehabilitated historic building. Ms. Boak Terrell is guiding the Baltimore Pumphouse through its Phase 3 closing and completing lease-up.
 
Working with residents in ACT’s partner community, Ms. Boak Terrell is securing the return of traditional business and retail to a Baltimore neighborhood for the first time in more than 50 years.  With residents, Ms. Boak Terrell is developing Last Mile Park, a one-mile urban ecological and public art trail that will integrate the Broadway East and Eager Park communities.  She has spearheaded a resident-led coalition to develop a comprehensive residential redevelopment plan, including a services strategy to keep legacy families in their homes. She also organized crucial partnerships and funding for a neighborhood-wide Greenprint. She is helping residents implement that Greenprint with a first demonstration Green Street.

Ms. Boak Terrell graduated from The Johns Hopkins University with her Bachelor of Arts in International Relations. She graduated from the University of Minnesota Law School magna cum laude with her Juris Doctor. She also has a Master in Public Administration from the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government. Ms. Boak Terrell is a member of the bars of Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Minnesota. 

Ms. Boak Terrell is published through Harvard’s Joint Center on Housing Studies on the topic of supportive housing for the homeless.  Ms. Boak Terrell has been a leader on issues of police legitimacy, securing and producing the first national interview with former Chicago Police Chief Garry McCarthy following the tragic shooting of Laquan MacDonald. 

Ms. Boak Terrell is happily married to an economics and politics journalist. Together they have an exquisite three-year old and live in the great city of Baltimore.”