Bio
Aldrin Rafael Bonilla, EdD, is Executive Vice President of the Fund for the City of New York (FCNY), where he advances one of the nation’s leading civic institutions dedicated to improving local government, strengthening nonprofit organizations, and fostering innovation in public service. A cross-sector executive, educator, and public-sector strategist, Dr. Bonilla has spent more than twenty-five years building partnerships that strengthen institutions, develop leaders, and improve government as well as nonprofit organizational capacity to serve communities.
At FCNY, Dr. Bonilla leads initiatives that recognize excellence in public service, expand nonprofit capacity, cultivate emerging civic leaders, and promote collaboration across philanthropy, government, academia, and the social sector. His portfolio includes the Sloan Public Service Awards, Sloan Awards for Excellence in Teaching Science and Mathematics, the New York City Community Planning Fellowship, strategic grantmaking initiatives, and cross-sector partnerships that advance civic innovation and organizational effectiveness throughout New York City.
Dr. Bonilla’s career has been guided by a simple but enduring mission: strengthening the institutions that strengthen democracy. Whether working with government agencies, nonprofit organizations, universities, philanthropies, or community leaders, he focuses on building the leadership, partnerships, and institutional capacity needed to address complex public challenges and expand opportunity.
He also serves as Chair and Commissioner of the New York City Equal Employment Practices Commission (EEPC), the City’s independent oversight body responsible for evaluating equal employment opportunity and affirmative employment programs across municipal government. His leadership emphasizes workforce equity, organizational accountability, data-informed decision-making, and continuous institutional improvement across one of the nation’s largest public-sector workforces.
Previously, Dr. Bonilla served as Deputy Borough President of Manhattan, leading initiatives in community planning, civic engagement, government innovation, and interagency collaboration while serving as a Trustee of the New York City Employees’ Retirement System (NYCERS), one of the nation’s largest public pension funds. Earlier, he founded CUNY in the Heights, expanding educational opportunity and workforce pathways for Northern Manhattan and the Bronx; directed the U.S. Census Bureau’s Northern Manhattan operations during Census 2000; and helped pioneer FCNY’s Community and Civic Technology Program, advancing the use of data and technology to strengthen nonprofit organizations and neighborhood planning.
An educator, researcher, and executive coach, Dr. Bonilla serves as an adjunct faculty of New York University, where he teaches graduate courses in leadership and organizational innovation. A frequent speaker on public leadership, democratic governance, nonprofit innovation, and organizational change, he brings practical experience informed by scholarship and a deep commitment to public service.
Dr. Bonilla earned a Doctor of Education (EdD), with distinction, in Leadership and Innovation from New York University’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. He also holds a Master of Public Administration and a Master of Arts in Political Science from Binghamton University, and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and Latin American Studies from Colgate University. His executive education includes advanced study at Harvard University, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. He is a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach, advising executives and organizations on strengths-based leadership, talent development, and organizational effectiveness.
