Pari Ryan
Program Analyst, San Diego Housing Commission

Pari Ryan is a Program Analyst at the San Diego Housing Commission. Born in Iran at the height of the revolution, Pari’s family immigrated to the United States when she was three, and settled in San Diego.

Pari graduated from San Diego State University with a BA in Public Administration, and while completing her degree, received her first taste of local politics in 2003 as an intern in the office of Councilmember Donna Frye. In January 2005 Pari joined the Councilmember’s team full-time where she served as a community liaison, and an analyst for land use and housing issues. During this time, she was also heavily involved in the Councilmember’s mayoral and reelection campaigns, where she learned the art of organizing, from precinct walks and phone banking, to volunteer coordination and getting out the vote.

Coming from a family of small business owners, Pari recognized the potential impact of combining private and public sector best practices to effect positive change. So to balance out her professional experience, in late 2008 she took a position in a small firm in San Diego. There, she helped launch an award-winning green roof and living wall contracting company, the first of its kind in the region. Pari also dove head first into the world of construction, serving as estimator and project manager for the company. She developed a passion for sustainable contracting, which combined with her management responsibilities, gave her insight into the benefits and challenges that face small businesses on a daily basis.

In 2011, Pari recognized an opportunity to apply her professional experience to affordable housing, and joined the San Diego Housing Commission. Here, she combines her skills in community development and private contracting, with those developed in the fields of public relations and long-range planning. Pari looks forward to growing within the organization and, having spent her formative years living in affordable housing, is passionate about helping increase quality, affordable housing in the City.

She and her husband live in North Park, where they enjoy exploring the neighboring communities on their bikes, while planning their next big backpacking trip.