Today the DC Housing Authority (DCHA) Stabilization and Reform (STAR) Board voted to appoint Dorian Jenkins as DCHA’s Interim Executive Director as of August 1. I’m grateful to the STAR Board for working to ensure a smooth leadership transition as they continue to look for a permanent director. I asked the STAR Board to appoint someone with deep expertise in public housing and housing subsidy systems because District residents need and deserve leadership with the experience to fix these critical systems. As a consultant with Nan McKay, Mr. Jenkins supported DCHA’s response to the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development’s 2022 investigation. He previously helped lead public housing authorities in Los Angeles, CA, Memphis, TN, and Jefferson, OH.

My close oversight of the agency will continue because it’s going to take a transformational change to solve longstanding problems and make housing conditions better for our residents. There is much to do, and I look forward to working with the STAR Board and Director Jenkins to continue stabilizing DCHA and to recruit a stellar permanent Director to make DCHA the best public housing agency in the country.