The 2024 Statewide Housing Conference Planning Committee is thrilled to announce Heather McGhee as this year’s conference keynote speaker. The conference will be held on Thursday November 14th in South Burlington.
Heather is an author, national political contributor, educator, and public policy leader. For nearly two decades, Heather helped build the "think and do" tank Dēmos, a non-profit public policy organization working to build a just, inclusive, multiracial democracy and economy. She served as the organization’s president for four years.
Heather is the author of The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together, which spent 10 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and was longlisted for the National Book Award and Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction. The Chicago Tribune said, “Required reading to move the country forward...”. It was the Washington Post and TIME Magazine Must-Read Book of 2021. The book was adapted into a Spotify podcast by Higher Ground, the production company of Barack and Michelle Obama, in June 2022. A young adult readers’ version of The Sum of Us was released by Random House Children’s in 2023 and was selected as a Best Teen and Young Adult Non-Fiction book of that year by Kirkus Reviews.
As a frequent political contributor, McGhee regularly appears on NBC’s Meet the Press and MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Deadline White House and All In. Her 2020 TED talk “Racism Has a Cost for Everyone” has been viewed more than 2.5 million times. She has shared her opinions, writing and research in numerous outlets, including the Washington Post, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Politico and National Public Radio.
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston (FHLBB) is the 2024 Keynote Sponsor. The bank continues its leadership in community development and racial equity throughout Vermont and New England through programs like Lift Up Homeownership, which provides downpayment and closing cost assistance for People of Color. As this year’s Keynote Sponsor and through its ongoing programming and leadership, FHLBB is contributing to a diverse, thriving Vermont where everybody has a home.
Early registration for the conference will open in August. Details can be found at https://vhfa.org/community/conference, or by subscribing to VHFA’s news at https://vhfa.org/news/subscribe.
The 2024 Statewide Housing Conference Planning Committee is:
Champlain Office of Economic Opportunity Statewide Housing Advocacy Programs (CVOEO)
Efficiency Vermont (EVT)
Evernorth
Housing and Homelessness Alliance of Vermont (HHAV)
Land Access & Opportunities Board (LAOB)
US Housing & Urban Development (HUD)
USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
Vermont Affordable Housing Coalition (VAHC)
Vermont Agency of Human Services (AHS)
Vermont Association of Planning and Development Agencies (VAPDA)
Vermont Association of Realtors (VAR)
Vermont Bankers Association (VBA)
Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD)
Vermont Department for Children and Families (DCF)
Vermont Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD)
Vermont Home Builders & Remodelers Association
Vermont Housing & Conservation Board (VHCB)
Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA)
Vermont League of Cities and Towns (VLCT)
Vermont Professionals of Color Network (VTPoC)
Vermont State Housing Authority (VSHA)