Presley L. Gillespie
Board Member
Presley L. Gillespie is a member of the Board of Directors of the Center for Community Progress. He is the President and CEO of Neighborhood Allies, a Pittsburgh-based community development intermediary that works with residents and organizations to expand opportunity and advance equitable neighborhood revitalization.
Since joining Neighborhood Allies, Gillespie has led the organization’s strategic growth and strengthened its role as a trusted partner in the regional community development ecosystem. Under his leadership, the organization has expanded its scale and impact, growing from a $2.1 million annual budget to more than $7 million and significantly increasing its assets. He has guided the launch of innovative initiatives, including the Centralized Real Estate Accelerator, and helped build cross-sector networks that align capital, capacity, and strategy to support community investment.
Gillespie brings experience spanning both nonprofit and corporate leadership. Prior to Neighborhood Allies, he was the founding Executive Director of the Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation, the first citywide community development corporation in Youngstown, Ohio. He also spent 18 years in banking, primarily focused on community development and commercial real estate lending. His roles included Vice President at KeyBank, where he structured and closed community development loans supporting affordable housing, economic development, and job creation, as well as senior positions in middle market and community development banking.
Gillespie serves on several local and national boards, including Grantmakers of Western Pennsylvania and the KeyBank National Advisory Council for the National Community Benefits Plan. He holds a BA in Organizational Communication and Management and in 2017 received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Youngstown State University. He currently resides in Pittsburgh with his wife and family.