Melissa Mark-Viverito was born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico and attended Columbia College at Columbia University in New York City where she earned her B.A. majoring in Political Science in 1991. Melissa was later selected to attend the National Urban Fellows Program and earned her Master of Public Administration from Baruch College, City University of New York in 1995.
Melissa is the first Puerto Rican woman and Latina elected to serve as Council Member for the 8th Councilmanic District of the City of New York. In the New York City Council, Melissa serves on the following committees: Aging; Civil Service & Labor; Community Development; Contracts; State and Legislative Affairs; Waterfronts; Youth Services. In February of 2009 Council Member Mark Viverito was asked by the Speaker of the New York City Council (Christine C. Quinn) to serve as Chair of it's Senior Center Subcommittee. Council Member Mark-Viverito is a strong advocate for the creation and preservation of income-targeted housing and is staunch advocate for our city’s public housing. Legislatively, Melissa is the primary sponsor of some key legislation that has been signed into law: Int. No. 627-A--A local law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York in relation to the duty of an owner to refrain from harassment of tenants and remedies for the breach of such duty; Int. No. 688--A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the registration of general contractors; Int. No. 687-A--A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring certain buildings or structures to undergo structural inspections; Int 613-- A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the use of explosives for demolition and excavation; Int 0878--A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring safety registration numbers.
In 2008 Melissa formed part of a delegation of labor representatives to Bolivia to observe the August 10 referendum called by President Evo Morales Ayma. The vote was held to determine whether Morales, Vice Presiden Alvaro Garcia Linera and eight out of nine departmental Prefects should stay in office. President Morales received more than 67% support.
Prior to her election to the New York City Council, Melissa worked at 1199 SEIU New York's Health Care Union. In her capacity as Strategic Organizer at 1199 SEIU, Melissa assisted in shaping the union's home care strategy. Melissa also served as Director of the Hispanic Education and Legal Fund (HELF), a citywide non-partisan voter registration program. In 2000 Melissa worked for the Census Bureau and was responsible for managing all local census operations for one of its five Manhattan offices. From 1996 to 1999 she served as Deputy Director of ASPIRA of New York, a youth leadership development organization, and was responsible for administering the agency’s day-to-day operations.
In January of 2004 Melissa volunteered in Iowa working on behalf of Howard Dean’s presidential campaign and directed Latino outreach in Davenport, Iowa. From September to November 2004 Melissa took a leave of absence from her job at 1199 SEIU and was hired by the Democratic National Committee to work on behalf of the Kerry/Edwards campaign in Florida to coordinate field operations for the St. Petersburg regional office.
Besides her professional life, Melissa has been very active in community affairs. She is a founding member of Women of El Barrio—an organization that promotes the development of women as leaders in the economic, political and social life of their community; served as Chair of the Violence Intervention Program—a community based domestic violence organization committed to ending violence in the lives of women and their children; and is a Board Member representing New York for the Boricua Initiative—a nationwide coalition of community activists committed to the political and economic empowerment of the Puerto Rican community.
Melissa is also a media activist having served as a producer and co-host for WBAI Pacifica Radio in New York for over ten years. Melissa also served on the Community Advisory Board of El Diario/La Prensa, New York City’s largest circulating Spanish language newspaper, where she met with the editorial staff and the newspaper’s Publisher to advise on issues of concern to New York City’s Latino community.
Melissa has also served as a Board Member of Community Board 11 and Community Board 2 in Manhattan, and served as Treasurer of El Barrio Revolving Loan Fund. Melissa was a delegate to the World Conference Against Racism in South Africa in 2001, and the International Women’s Conference in China in 1995.