National Homeless Law Center 2020 – 2022
Annual Report
The National Homelessness Law Center strives to cultivate a society where every person can live with dignity and enjoy their basic human rights, including the right to affordable, quality, and safe housing.
Every day our team works to meet this vision as we fearlessly advance federal, state and local policies to prevent and end homelessness while fiercely defending the rights of all unhoused persons.
Our work is firmly rooted in our shared values:
Human-centered & People-first
We recognize the ways that every person’s humanity is undercut by systems of oppression. We build relationships with each other and our partners that authentically honor that humanity.
Collaborative
We take direction from impacted communities. We strengthen the capacity of our teammates and partners. We build relationships of trust.
Inclusive, Diverse, and Anti-racist
We reckon with the impact of power, inequality and oppression on people, and actively dismantle these systems internally and externally.
Trusted, Credible, and Rigorous
We are transparent, honest, and reliable. We are accountable to each other and our partners. We are up-front about our expertise and limitations.
Growth-minded
We listen, learn, and adapt to change, as informed by each other and our external relationships.
Empowered and Proactive
We support, are accountable, and shift power to impacted communities. We care for each other in a systemic way that builds capacity and honors our experiences.
Letter from the Board Chair
The past three years have seen monumental (seismic?) changes across the country, including at the National Homelessness Law Center. We last published an annual report in 2019, highlighting our 30th Anniversary. Coming just months after that 30th Celebration, the global Covid-19 pandemic shut down the world as we knew it. Unhoused people were hit particularly hard; unable to quarantine or “stay home,” living outside or in crowded congregate shelters, and already more likely to suffer from chronic illnesses, they were especially vulnerable over the past three years as we weathered the unprecedented pandemic. Responding to the urgent need as it arose in 2020, we quickly pivoted our plans, working with our on the ground networks to assess needs and develop recommendations for protective policies. The staff of the Law Center also pivoted to working from home, and in the years since, our staff has grown to a truly “national” staff, sand our virtual offices now stretch from Washington DC to Washington state, New York to Arizona, California to Texas, and beyond.
After leading the Law Center for its first three decades, our Founder & Executive Director Maria Foscarinis stepped down from her position and our second Executive Director Antonia Fasanelli joined the organization in April 2021. During this leadership transition, we also updated our name to the National Homeless Law Center, reflecting our desire to best represent the core of our work to end homelessness.
The Board of Directors of the Law Center also made crucial decisions to become more diverse and better reflective of the people we represent. To that end, we implemented board term limits, and made the decision to grow from 25 Board Members in 2020 to XX by the end of 2022.
Together, the Board and Staff of the Law Center joined the national racial reckoning of 2020, and redoubled our efforts and commitment to dismantling white supremacy, through a Board & Staff training on racial diversity, an internal Staff anti-racism task force, and a Salary Task Force committed to updating outdated salary scales to bring in more diverse staff and commit to salary equity practices. e
Two of our signature programs and events have been rebranded to reflect significant changes in messaging and outreach. Our annual McKinney Vento Awards, which was renamed the Human Right to Housing Awards in 2022, reflecting our commitment to highlight those leaders at the forefront of championing the human right to housing/ OR ending the homelessness crisis. Our long time pro bono partner program, formerly known as LEAP(Lawyers Executive Action Program) was renamed HALT because…
Finally, we began our strategic planning process in 2022, and I’m excited for you to read more about that in our Look Ahead section.
2020 – 2022 Highlights
Our Donors
Foundations & Grants
2020 !
2021 #
2022 ~
| Annie E. Casey Foundation ~ |
| Bank of America Charitable Foundation !#~ |
| Butler Family Fund ! |
| Conrad N. Hilton Foundation #~ |
| Denver Foundation !# |
| Equal Justice Works #~ |
| Greater Washington Community Foundation !#~ |
| Herb Block Foundation !#~ |
| Impact Fund ~ |
| Jeffrey and Leslie Fischer Family Foundation ~ |
| Ludwig Family Foundation !#~ |
| Mauna Kea Fund #~ |
| Oak Foundation !#~ |
| Oakwood Foundation !#~ |
| Oscar & Anna Bentley Charitable Foundation, Inc. # |
| Raikes Foundation !#~ |
| Sand Piper Fund !#~ |
| The Bunting Family Foundation ~ |
| Three Princes Fund ! |
| Touma Foundation ~ |
| Trinity Church Wallstreet ~ |
| Zegar Family Fund # |
Event & Corporate Sponsors
2020 Awards Sponsors
2021 Awards Sponsors
2022 Awards Sponsors
HALT – Homelessness Action Legal Team
| Akin Gump |
| Alston & Bird ! |
| Arent Fox LLP # |
| Baker Donelson |
| Dechert LLP |
| Fried Frank LLP # |
| Goodwin Procter LLP |
| Kirkland & Ellis LLP |
| Latham & Watkins LLP |
| McCarter & English LLP |
| Microsoft Corporation |
| Morrison & Foerester LLP != |
| Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP |
| Sullivan & Cromwell LLP ~ |
| WilmerHale |
! Joined in 2021
# Cycled off 2021
~ Joined 2022
= Cycled off 2022
Individual Donors
2020 !
2021 #
2022 ~
| Jonathan Barnes ~ |
| Anthony Barrueta !#~ |
| Garrard Beeney #~ |
| Susan Bennett # |
| Mr. Eric A. Bensky !#~ |
| Mary T. Benton #~ |
| Robert Boeller # |
| Dr. William Breakey and Mrs. Angela Breakey !#~ |
| Ann Bushmiller and Albert Cacozza ! |
| Mr. Paul F. Caron !#~ |
| Mark Carter # |
| Bruce Casino !# |
| Mr. Rajib Chanda !#~ |
| Jennifer & William Clary ~ |
| Bret Cohen #~ |
| Mr. William Dallas, Jr. and Ms. Janet Neustaetter !~ |
| Dana DeLorenzo # |
| Antonia Fasanelli #~ |
| Pam Fessler & Matthew Koll ~ |
| Mr. Dwight A. Fettig and Ms. Monica M. Boudjouk !#~ |
| Ms. Erica Flapan and Mr. Francis Bonahon ! |
| Ms. Maria Foscarinis and Mr. Nathan Stoltzfus #~ |
| Mr. Rob Fowler and Ms. Barb Fowler !#~ |
| Edward Gray !#~ |
| Garry & Tammy Green #~ |
| Deborah Greenspan !#~ |
| Renata Hesse !~ |
| Robert Higgins #~ |
| Steven Holley #~ |
| Paul Hunt ! |
| John Jacob ~ |
| John Jenney ~ |
| Lindsey Johnson ~ |
| Ms. Kirsten T. Johnson-Obey !#~ |
| Ms. Julia M. Jordan and Mr. James F. Cummings !#~ |
| Moses Journey # |
| Georgia Kazakis ! |
| William Kelly ! |
| Bob and Wendy Kenney !# |
| Colbert King ! |
| John King ! |
| George Kundanis ! |
| Philip Lee # |
| Karen L Lightfoot ! |
| Kip Makuc !#~ |
| Pam and Allan Malester !#~ |
| Jessica McEntee ! |
| Edward McNicholas !# |
| Mr. Matthew T. Murchison !#~ |
| Janet Neustaetter ! |
| Mark Newell ! |
| Jacqueline O’Garrow !#~ |
| David & Nancy Paige !~ |
| Khalia Parish # |
| Jeffrey Pash !# |
| Ms. Margaret K. Pfeiffer and Mr. Carl F. Pfeiffer II !#~ |
| Ms. Barbara Poppe !#~ |
| V. Frederick Rickey # |
| James E. Rocap ~ |
| David Rogers ~ |
| Bruce Rosenblum !#~ |
| Daniel Siegel ! |
| Jeffrey Simes !#~ |
| Willian Jonathan Leo Stanton #~ |
| Pamela Taylor ! |
| Daniel Teweles # |
| Peter Thomas ! |
| Ms. Suzanne Turner #~ |
| Mary-Claire van Leunen ! |
| Susan Vento !~ |
| Lauren Wagner # |
| Ron & Joyellen Zollman ~ |
Staff and Board
Staff
2020 !
2021 #
2022 ~
| Hailey Aldrich ~ |
| Melissa Anoh ! |
| Karianna Barr !# |
| Tristia Bauman !#~ |
| Antonia Fasanelli #~ |
| Maria Foscarinis ! |
| Julia Hartenstein ~ |
| Xinge He ! |
| Whittni Holland ! |
| Janet Hostetler #~ |
| Erika Lopez ~ |
| Carlton Martin !#~ |
| Alex Matak #~ |
| Katie Meyer Scott ~ |
| Lily Milwit #~ |
| Jeremy Penn ~ |
| Sarah Riley !# |
| Anna Marie Rodriguez #~ |
| Brandy Ryan !# |
| Deborah Shepard !# |
| Alex Taggart #~ |
| Eric Tars !#~ |
| Jennifer Toth Clary ~ |
Board of Directors
2020 !
2021 #
2022 ~
| Eric A. Bensky, Chair !#~ |
| Julia M. Jordan, Vice-Chair !#~ |
| Robert C. Ryan, Treasurer !#~ |
| Kirsten Johnson-Obey, Secretary !#~ |
| Mary T. Benton ~ |
| Mark Baugh ~ |
| Paul F. Caron !#~ |
| Bruce J. Casino !# |
| Rajib Chanda !#~ |
| Pam Fessler ~ |
| Dwight A. Fettig !#~ |
| Deborah Greenspan !#~ |
| Georgia Kazakis !#~ |
| Angie Garcia Lathrop ~ |
| Pamela Malester !#~ |
| Jospehine McNeil ~ |
| Edward R. McNicholas !# |
| Matthew Murchison !#~ |
| Jacqueline O’Garrow !#~ |
| Jason Rivera ~ |
| G.W. Rolle !#~ |
| Jeffrey A. Simes !#~ |
| Franklin Turner !#~ |
| Suzanne Turner #~ |
| Robert Warren !#~ |
| Jill Williams ~ |
| Khadijah Williams !#~ |
| Ron Zollman ~ |
