Meet the Staff
| Board of Directors | Executive Director, Ben Burton: Top
Mr. Burton has been the Executive Director of the Miami Coalition for the Homeless for the last 7 years. He has over twenty years of experience working with people experiencing homelessness and extensive experience implementing programs for varied populations including the most difficult to serve homeless and mentally ill residents. He currently serves as Co-Chair of the Community Coalition for a Living Wage, is a member of the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust’s Housing and Service Development Committees, and a member of the Miami-Dade County Community Action Agency Board. He is the founding Secretary of the Living Room, an HIV/AIDS housing and services agency, as well as the founding Board President of Georgia Rehabilitation Outreach. Prior to joining the Coalition, he was the Clinical Director for Carrfour Supportive Housing and was the Assistant Executive Director at Community Friendship, a psychosocial rehabilitation agency. Ben has a Bachelor of Arts in Biology, completed a Health Professions Program at Harvard University, has a Masters in Clinical Psychology, is a licensed Professional Counselor and a Mental Health Counselor in several states, is a nationally certified Counselor, and internationally certified as a Psychiatric Rehabilitation Professional. Policy Director, Rita Clark: Top
Rita is the Chairperson of the Florida Coalition for the Homeless Policy Council and serves as Florida’s State Captain in Washington, DC for Capitol Hill visits. She is a founder of a nationally recognized best practice family violence program, and served as a Florida Governor’s Commission Member for four years to develop domestic violence policy in the State of Florida. She also served as Executive Vice President of Project Debby, when it received the Oprah Winfrey Angel Award for its innovative approach and commitment to ending domestic violence. She received the prestigious Governor’s Peace at Home Award from Florida Governor Chiles and has authored several publications related to domestic violence. Rita is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, holds a Master’s degree in Social Work from Barry University, and two undergraduate degrees - one from Florida Atlantic University and the other from Western Illinois University. As a social worker she has held clinical and administrative positions in child welfare, domestic violence, juvenile justice, substance abuse, mental health, and Early Head Start settings. Director of Administration, Michelle Cerrato-Dominguez: Top
Michelle Cerrato-Dominguez has been working in the non-profit sector since 1995 when she joined the staff of Catholic Charities. She then moved on to the Latin America and Caribbean Regional Office of Save the Children, which was responsible for operations in seven countries. Here she had the opportunity to travel to Canada for the First Ladies of the Western Hemisphere Conference and met several First Ladies including, First Lady Hillary Clinton. She then joined Carrfour Supportive Housing serving as Assistant to the President. She has represented the Miami Coalition for the Homeless while advocating on behalf of the homeless to Dade County’s State delegation in Tallahassee and Dade County’s federal delegation in Washington, DC. Michelle currently serves as the Treasurer of the Florida Coalition for the Homeless Board. |
Ms. Clark came to the Miami Coalition for the Homeless from the Homeless Coalition of Palm Beach County where she served as their Executive Director. Several flagship projects were launched under her leadership including the Faces of Homelessness Speaker’s Bureau and Project Homeless Connect. She received the “Above and Beyond” award from a local homeless veterans program and was recognized by the Chamber of Commerce for her professional excellence in actively serving the Palm Beach County community.