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 The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the secretary of housing and ur ...

, during the administration of President Barack Obama. She had a history of working to fight homelessness in America. 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 The United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) is an independent federal agency within the U.S. executive branch that leads the implementation of the federal strategic plan to prevent and end homelessness. USICH is advised by a Co ...

. In December 2018, Governor-elect

Tim Walz Timothy James Walz (; born April 6, 1964) is an American politician who has served since 2019 as the 41st governor of Minnesota. He was the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic nominee for Vice President of the United States, vice pre ...

nominated Ho to serve as director of the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency. She was reappointed in 2023.

Early life and education

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

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

(USICH), overseeing the creation of Opening Doors, the country's first federal plan to end homelessness. 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 Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

United States areas. In 2013, she was appointed as Senior Advisor for Housing and Services at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Ho's work has focused on preventing and ending homelessness for families, and the impact homelessness has on health. She has been very involved in "rapid rehousing," a method of helping families leave

homeless shelter Homeless shelters are a type of service and total institution that provides temporary residence for homelessness, homeless individuals and families. Shelters exist to provide residents with safety and protection from exposure to the weather whi ...

s 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."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ho, Jennifer Bryn Mawr College alumni American homelessness activists Living people 21st-century American women politicians Year of birth missing (living people) United States Department of Housing and Urban Development officials Obama administration personnel State cabinet secretaries of Minnesota