Jennifer Ho

Jennifer Ho is an American government official. She was the Senior Advisor for Housing and Services at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development,[1] during the administration of President Barack Obama. She had a history of working to fight homelessness in America.[2] Prior to her appointment to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, she oversaw the creation of Opening Doors, the country's first federal plan to end homelessness, while serving as deputy director at the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness.[2]

Jennifer Ho
Born
Minnesota
Alma materBryn Mawr
EmployerMinnesota Housing Finance Agency
Known forHearth Connection

In December 2018, Governor-elect Tim Walz nominated Ho to serve as director of the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency.[3]

Early life and education

Ho was born and raised in Minnesota and graduated from Bryn Mawr in 1987,[4] earning her bachelor's degree in philosophy.[2]

Career

From 1999 to 2010, Ho was executive director of Hearth Connection, a nonprofit project focusing on homelessness in Minnesota. From 2010 to 2013, she served as deputy director at the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH), overseeing the creation of Opening Doors, the country's first federal plan to end homelessness.[2][5] During her time at USICH, she also incorporated programs to address poverty and homelessness for Native Americans living on tribal land and also in urban United States areas.[6] In 2013, she was appointed as Senior Advisor for Housing and Services at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).[4]

Ho's work has focused on preventing and ending homelessness for families, and the impact homelessness has on health.[7] She has been very involved in "rapid rehousing," a method of helping families leave homeless shelters and become rehoused as soon as possible. Under her administration, HUD has spent nearly $1.5 billion on this initiative, making it "a key tool for reducing homelessness for hundreds and thousands of families."[8]

References
  1. "Region II Holds Olmstead Working Session". U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. April 16, 2014. Retrieved September 5, 2015.
  2. "Jennifer Ho". National Building Museum. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2015.
  3. "Gov.-elect Tim Walz picks first five state agency commissioners". Star Tribune.
  4. "Jennifer Ho '87 Appointed Senior Advisor for Housing and Services at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development". Bryn Mawr College. March 21, 2013. Retrieved September 5, 2015.
  5. Hopfensperger, Jean (11 February 2010). "Minnesota a Model in Aiding Homeless: A Minnesota Program Offers a Model for How to Meet the Challenges of Long-Term Homelessness". Star Tribune. Retrieved 5 September 2015.
  6. Capriccioso, Rob (1 July 2010). "Homeless Native Americans Get Federal Focus". Indian Country Today (Rapid City, SD). Retrieved 5 September 2015 – via EBSCOhost.
  7. Lopez, Soyenixe (August 10, 2015). "Advocate: Homelessness, health costs linked". Arizona Daily Sun. Retrieved September 5, 2015.
  8. Fessler, Pam (7 July 2015). "For Homeless Families, Quick Exit From Shelters Is Only a Temporary Fix". Morning Edition (NPR). Retrieved 5 September 2015 – via EBSCOhost.
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