Michelle Torres

Michelle Torres serves as a programs associate director with Advisors, leading technical assistance and capacity-building initiatives across Puerto Rico and the United States. With over nine years in the nonprofit sector, she directs programs that leverage federal and private funding to empower communities through inclusive engagement, participatory planning, and placemaking. Her work advances economic development, affordable housing, and community resilience by fostering stakeholder collaboration.

Michelle designs and delivers educational tools and capacity-building activities, including webinars, workshops, and e-learning courses, tailored to diverse audiences in English and Spanish. She has led and contributed to several key initiatives: directing the Pre-Disaster Housing Planning Initiative (PDHI), a HUD-FEMA partnership enhancing state disaster housing planning in Michigan, Missouri, and Kentucky; leading quarterly meetings for Puerto Rican municipalities under the Distressed Cities Technical Assistance (DCTA) program to build local government capacity; supporting nonprofit organizations through the Section 4 Capacity Building program focused on affordable housing and community development; and facilitating cross-sector partnerships under the Housing X Education initiative to promote affordable housing and education outcomes.

Michelle holds a master of architecture in history and theory from McGill University, a master of arts in Literature from the University of the Sacred Heart, and a bachelor’s degree in environmental design from the University of Puerto Rico. She is committed to leveraging creativity, collaboration, and bilingual communication to enrich communities and strengthen local capacity.