On January 26, 2009, Shaun Donovan was sworn in as the 15th United States Secretary for Housing and Urban Development. He has devoted his career to ensuring access to safe, decent, and affordable housing and he will continue that effort in the Obama Administration. Secretary Donovan believes that America's homes are the foundation for family, safe neighborhoods, good schools, and solid businesses. He has a strong commitment to make quality housing possible for every American.
Secretary Donovan previously served as Commissioner of the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD). He created and implemented HPD's New Housing Marketplace Plan to build and preserve 165,000 affordable homes, the largest municipal affordable housing plan in the nation's history. His work at HPD included the New York City Acquisition Fund, an award-winning collaboration with foundations and banks to finance affordable housing; an innovative inclusionary zoning program; an ambitious supportive housing plan; and the Center for New York City Neighborhoods, one of the earliest responses to the foreclosure crisis.
Before his service as HPD Commissioner, Secretary Donovan worked in the private sector on financing affordable housing, and was a visiting scholar at New York University, where he researched and wrote about the preservation of federally-assisted housing. He was also a consultant to the Millennial Housing Commission on strategies for increasing the production of multifamily housing. The Commission was created by the United States Congress to recommend ways to expand housing opportunities across the nation.
Secretary Donovan rejoins HUD after his previous service in the Clinton administration as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Multifamily Housing, where he was the primary federal official responsible for privately-owned multifamily housing. At that time, he ran housing programs that helped 1.7 million families access affordable housing. He also served as acting FHA Commissioner during the Clinton/Bush presidential transition. Prior to his first service at HUD, he worked at the Community Preservation Corporation (CPC) in New York City, a non-profit lender and developer of affordable housing. He also researched and wrote about housing policy at the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University and worked as an architect.
Secretary Donovan holds a B.A. and Masters degrees in Public Administration and Architecture from Harvard.
Follow the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development on Twitter @HUDnews.
Secretary Shaun Donovan's Posts
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Eight Years After Hurricane Katrina: The Obama Administration’s Commitment to Rebuilding Better
August 29, 2013 at 1:17 PM EDTShortly after he took office, the President tasked the Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano and HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan with rethinking the federal approach to disaster recovery, which resulted in the creation of the National Disaster Recovery Framework.
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Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Strategy: Helping Communities Prepare for the Impacts of a Changing Climate
August 19, 2013 at 11:11 AM EDTIt was one of the most painful chapters in the region’s history and the Obama administration has been committed to helping communities turn the page.
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Fomentando el sueño americano de tener casa propia
August 7, 2013 at 11:02 AM EDTPor años, ser propietario de una vivienda fue un símbolo de responsabilidad y una fuente de seguridad para millones de familias de clase media a lo largo del país. Pero la crisis financiera de 2008 puso todo eso en peligro, y cuando el Presidente Obama asumió el cargo, el mercado de la vivienda estaba en caída vertical. Los valores de las viviendas se desplomaban y los embargos hipotecarios estaban a niveles récord.
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Promoting the American Dream of Homeownership
August 6, 2013 at 5:50 PM EDTIt’s time to turn the page on an era of housing bubbles and taxpayer bailouts, and build a new housing finance system that will provide secure homeownership for responsible middle class families.
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Ending Housing Discrimination Against LGBT Americans
January 30, 2012 at 12:30 PM EDTShaun Donovan, Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, discusses a new Equal Access to Housing Rule that will help to ensure LGBT individuals and couples have the right to live where they choose.
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A Place to Call Home: HUD’s Work to Advance Equality for Transgender Americans
November 16, 2011 at 5:20 PM EDTShaun Donovan, Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, speaks before the National Center for Transgender Equality Awards Ceremony and reflects on the Administration's progress on important issues in the transgender community.
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A Step Toward better Housing and Economic Development in Indian Country
August 24, 2011 at 6:34 PM EDTDepartment of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Donovan announces investments to help rural communities across the country tackle their toughest housing and poverty challenges.
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Ending Veteran Homelessness
June 6, 2011 at 9:06 PM EDTSecretary Shaun Donovan talks about one of the top priorities for himself and President Obama: Ending homelessness among veterans.
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A Commitment to Responsibility – HUD’s Work to Build a Clean Energy Economy and a Stronger Environment
January 19, 2011 at 2:15 PM EDTSecretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Shaun Donovan, shares some of HUD's major accomplishments in advancing clean energy and a stronger environment.
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Developing Long-Term Solutions to Some of the Country’s Most Significant Housing Challenges
October 14, 2010 at 3:03 PM EDTSecretary Shaun Donovan reflects on the event that demonstrated the Obama Administration’s commitment to developing long-term solutions to some of the country’s most significant housing challenges.
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