Melanie French, CEO of RR Living, Named Chair of Entryway's National Board
Entryway, the national nonprofit that partners with the multifamily real estate industry to provide career training, employment, and housing to individuals at risk of or experiencing homelessness, has named Melanie French, CEO of RR Living, as Chair of its National Board of Directors. Doug Bibby, former President of the National Multifamily Housing Council, joins as Vice Chair. The appointments follow founder Chris Finlay's transition out of the chairmanship after 12 years leading the organization he created.
Finlay framed the move as a decision made from strength, not necessity.
"Today, I'm announcing that I'm transitioning the chairmanship of Entryway. Melanie French will become board chair, and Doug Bibby joining as vice chair. I want to be direct about why this is happening now: the organization is in the strongest position it has ever been, and these are exactly the leaders to take it further. While I'll be stepping off the board, I won't be stepping away from this mission — I remain as engaged and vocal an advocate as ever."
From pilot program to national movement
French and Bibby step into their roles at a moment of real momentum. What began as a pilot program at Middleburg has grown into a nationwide effort backed by more than 100 apartment industry companies, serving over 2,800 individuals and families and operating in 11 markets across the country. By Entryway's measure, each participant placed into a career generates nearly $100,000 in total economic impact for themselves and their communities — a figure that captures the organization's core premise: that connecting a motivated person to the right job can change an entire trajectory.
That model is deceptively simple and quietly radical. Rather than treating homelessness and employment as separate problems, Entryway uses the multifamily industry itself as the bridge out of housing insecurity, sourcing, training, and placing individuals into on-site apartment careers. For the people it serves, a single placement can deliver both a paycheck and a home. For the industry, it creates a pipeline of committed, well-prepared talent in a field that consistently needs it.
The right leaders for the next phase
For French, the appointment extends a commitment she has already invested in deeply — she previously chaired the Finance Committee of Entryway's national board. She has described Entryway as a reflection of what our industry can accomplish when purpose and business come together, and has pointed to the opportunity for the organization to become the multifamily sector's premier workforce partner, connecting motivated talent with rewarding careers while helping companies build stronger teams.
French brings more than 30 years of multifamily operations and talent leadership to the role. As CEO of RR Living, she leads a Dallas-based multifamily and build-to-rent platform serving tens of thousands of residents. Earlier in her career, she led property management at Cortland, scaling that portfolio from 9,000 to more than 50,000 units, and held senior executive roles at AIMCO and DLP Capital. She was named a 2026 GlobeSt. Women of Influence honoree. Her path began as a leasing consultant — an origin she often cites as the source of her belief that apartments are meant to become long-term homes, and that the industry holds a unique power to change lives.
Joining her as Vice Chair, Doug Bibby is one of the most respected figures in American rental housing. He led the National Multifamily Housing Council as its president for more than two decades, representing thousands of member firms on Capitol Hill and before regulatory agencies, and spent 16 years as a senior officer at Fannie Mae before that. Reflecting on the appointment, Bibby has said he has long admired that Entryway offers a tangible solution for people working to rebuild their lives — made all the more meaningful, in his words, because it does so through the multifamily industry he has spent his career serving.
Continuity alongside new leadership
The transition also deepens the organization's ties to its founding community: Ali Edelstein, SVP of People & Culture at Middleburg, joins Entryway's National Board of Directors, reflecting Middleburg's continued commitment to the mission and its long-term growth. Entryway will continue to be led day-to-day by President & CEO David Williams, who works closely with the board to advance the organization's national growth strategy.
And while Finlay is stepping off the National Board, his message made clear that his commitment to the cause is unchanged. His founding vision — that the same work that turns apartments into homes can help people rebuild their own lives — remains the organization's north star. With French chairing the National Board, Bibby as her partner in leadership, Edelstein joining, and Finlay continuing as an advocate, Entryway heads into its next chapter with both fresh energy and deep continuity.
For an organization whose entire premise is that opportunity, once extended, tends to multiply, the leadership transition reads less like an ending and more like exactly what it was designed to do: hand the work to the next set of capable hands, and keep going.
