John A. Henry, Jr., J.D.
Chairman, Founder & CEO
John Henry is a nationally-recognized social entrepreneur and global business leader with a long record of success. He is recognized for his strong drive, passion and advocacy to deliver profitable growth and social impact through collaboration, innovation and hard work.
John is the Founder, Chairman & CEO of Chariot Companies. He formed Chariot in 2010 to create new, innovative and sustainable market-based business platforms by bringing underutilized assets into productive use within urban communities. Rather than seeing social challenges through different, disconnected lenses in a person’s life, Mr. Henry looks at how all these seemingly different issues can be tackled as a whole through individual, yet scalable, initiatives that create multiple forms of wealth for communities.
Over the years, Mr. Henry served has syndicated over $500 million in tax credits. He has overseen and developed more than 7,000 residential units and 3 million square feet of commercial space. As a public finance and commercial real estate attorney, Mr. Henry was counsel for one of the largest privately held owners of super-regional and regional malls whose portfolio exceeds more than 20 million square feet. Also, he served as bond counsel for the District of Columbia and other municipalities throughout the US and has expertise in multifamily housing projects administered by HUD, FHA-insured loans, tax-exempt bonds, Section 8 subsidies, Empowerment Zones, Hope VI and CDBG.
Mr. Henry has received numerous honors for his business, educational and civic activities. He was an Energy Star for Excellence in Energy Efficient Affordable Housing recipient from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development and US Department of Energy; Developer of the Year from EarthCraft of Virginia; Multifamily Division, Housing Achievement Award from South Carolina State Housing Finance Agency; and Innovator’s Award from the Charleston Regional Business Journal.
Mr. Henry graduated from Bucknell University with a Bachelor of Arts in History and Political Science, and from Washington & Lee University School of Law with a Juris Doctor degree. At Bucknell, Mr. Henry received the Arthur Ashe, Jr. Scholar Athlete Award (Football), Black Issues in Higher Education Sports Scholars Award, GTE All-Academic Team and All-Patriot League. In law school, Mr. Henry served as Solicited Articles Editor for, and had a Case Note published in, the Journal on Civil Rights and Social Justice. He successfully solicited Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas for an article on “Civility.” Mr. Henry served as a Law-Clerk for the Office of Staff Attorney with the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia, PA.
