For over three decades, Duke’s work with the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership communities has been a model for community-driven, sustainable approaches to addressing local challenges. To help address the pervasive issue of affordable housing, Duke has forged long-term partnerships with local governments, financial institutions, nonprofits, and others to make a meaningful difference to housing affordability and infrastructure.
awarded through the Doing Good Housing & Neighborhoods grant to neighborhood associations and partner non-profits since 2020 to fund 55 projects across 13 neighborhoods.
affordable housing units created since 2000.
invested with local Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) to support the creation of new affordable housing and home ownership.
Our Partners






To see a map of Duke community partners and initiatives, log into our Partnership Platform.
Programs and Initiatives
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Team Members
Eliza Mathew
Senior Director of Community Development
Eliza is the Senior Director of Community Development. In this role, Eliza is responsible for stewarding and growing Duke’s decades-long work in affordable housing and strengthening its relationships with neighbors, including the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership. Eliza coordinates the Affordable Housing Council, manages the Duke Homebuyers Club, and serves as a connector and strategist to empower community self-determination within collective community development. Eliza serves in Duke’s seat on Durham’s Homeless Services Advisory Committee (HSAC).
Eliza is also a proud Durham Public Schools (DPS) alum. Roll Pirates Roll! She went on to graduate from Elon University with a degree in Elementary Education and taught in DPS for several years before joining DCA. As a double DPSer, Eliza can point to formative experiences that ground her values around connection and engagement. She serves on the DPS Foundation board as an opportunity to continue intertwining her thread into this DPS legacy.
Jesse Huddleston
Senior Program Coordinator, Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership & Community Development
Adam Klein
Associate Vice President for Economic Development
Adam Klein is the Associate Vice President for Economic Development at Duke University. In this role, Klein leads and develops programs to positively impact economic opportunity across the Duke and Durham communities. His areas of focus include housing, workforce development, and economic mobility.
Prior to Duke, Adam led the American Tobacco Campus, an award-winning mixed-use historic renovation project totaling 1.3 million square feet. The Campus is home to global brands such as Clorox, RedHat, and GSK, startup companies, a high school, and 13 restaurants and retailers. Klein also led the American Underground, a home-grown tech hub based in Durham that serves over 250 startup companies. Under Klein’s leadership, American Underground was designated one of eight sites in the country to be part of Google for Entrepreneur’s Tech Hub network. This success garnered major national media coverage, including The Economist, Time Magazine, Fast Company, U.S. News & World Report, The Atlantic Monthly, and TechCrunch, and prompted a visit by the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness.
Originally from Brecksville, Ohio, he received his undergraduate degree from Denison University, where he was a two-time Academic All-American in golf, and holds a Master of Regional Planning with a specialization in economic development from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He and his wife, Manda, live in Durham with their three daughters.