Dothan Housing is the Only PHA in Alabama to Hold Membership with the Five Major Housing Associations, and Launches Beyond The Roof with Dothan Housing Podcast

DOTHAN, ALABAMA, UNITED STATES, March 7, 2023 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Dothan Housing (DH), a Moving to Work (MTW) Expansion Agency under the Landlord Incentives Cohort #3, is pleased to announce its membership in all five national affordable housing associations! These agencies include the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities (CLPHA), the MTW Collaborative, the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO), the Public Housing Authorities Directors Association (PHADA), and the National Leased Housing Association (NLHA). DH maintains its spirit of excellence by being the only Public Housing Authority (PHA) in Alabama to hold membership in all five associations!

DH’s goal is to position itself where it remains surrounded by the industry's finest and most innovative PHAs in the country. Membership is an opportunity to work cohesively with PHAs nationwide to further the affordable housing agenda nationally and utilize the best practices learned, tools obtained, and resources garnered within the City of Dothan and the Wiregrass Metro Area. DH understands the power of collective action and the significance of having great relationships with the local and regional HUD Field Offices and national HUD headquarters.

CLPHA
CLPHA remains a pivotal association in uniting the largest agencies under the banner of affordable housing advancement. DH is proud to be one of the 70 PHAs advocating for, researching, analyzing the state of, and educating the public and elected officials on affordable housing needs.

"The invitation to join CLPHA is an honor and reflects the hard work, consistency, and dedication of our team chasing better. We remain humbled, and our resolve is to maintain our stature as a PHA of the future that is focused on addressing the affordable housing crisis nationally and in the Wiregrass Metro Area," says Dr. Michael C. Threatt, DH’s Chief Operating Officer (COO).

MTW Collaborative
Since the MTW demonstration program was launched in 1996, an elite group of PHAs of only 139 in the nation and the top 4% of PHAs has created and tested innovative housing strategies. The MTW Collaborative has been a catalyst of information that has assisted DH in its journey as a part of the MTW Expansion under Cohort #3 Landlord Incentives.

“DH benefits significantly from its membership with the MTW Collaborative, which advocates for MTW communities, educates on MTW issues, and works to broaden the MTW program nationally,” says DH’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Samuel P. Crawford.

NAHRO
NAHRO houses over 19,500 individual members, associates, and agency members nationwide. Most recently, DH’s C-Suite team facilitated an educational seminar on the Ready to Rent (R2R) tenant readiness initiative influence on the agency’s Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program at the 2022 NAHRO annual conference in San Diego, California. The agency does its part by serving on committees and subcommittees as Dr. Threatt is a NAHRO Congressional Contact for the state of Alabama and serves on the NAHRO Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Advisory Committee (DEIAC).

"Throughout my tenure in the affordable housing arena, I understand the importance of tethering your agency with larger entities like NAHRO to connect and work together for a common goal. DH continues to set the standard in this area, and I am quite pleased with the results," says DH Board Chairman David C. Jamison.

PHADA
Through its PHADA membership, DH’s C-Suite leadership team has furthered their housing education by participating in the Rutgers University and PHADA partnership’s Executive Director Education Program (EDEP). DH's CEO, Samuel P. Crawford, is a recent graduate of EDEP. He also serves on the Housing Committee and Criminal Background-Reentry Housing Subcommittee. DH’s COO, Dr. Threatt, is in his final course and plans to obtain his EDEP certification requirements this summer. The newly taped Chief Housing Officer (CHO), Dr. Tamara Berry-Andrews, has also begun her EDEP journey.

"PHADA continues to provide policy tools and relevant educational opportunities for our PHA leadership team along with timely updates from HUD to help guide our Purpose 2025 strategic plan and MTW Supplemental Plan," says Crawford.

NLHA
DH is excited to have a membership with the National Leased Housing Association (NLHA). The NLHA is a consortium of public and private housing providers with the goal of maintaining the provision and maintenance of quality, affordable rental housing throughout the country. DH is proud to have its new CHO, Dr. Tamara Berry-Andrews, serve on the Housing and PHA Management Committees of NLHA.

“NHLA provides timely updates with its NLHA Bulletin that I can share with our team to ensure that we are aware of the latest program development and requirements from HUD,” says Dr. Berry-Andrews.

If There Is No Struggle, Then There Is No Progress
DH is far from perfect but has made incredible strides over the past three years based on the team that has been assembled. As a result of changing business needs as an MTW Expansion Agency, DH restructured to implement the C-Suite business model. DH has also started bringing its three-year Purpose 2025 Strategic Plan to fruition by realistically aligning its human capital, stated values, organizational principles, demonstrated actions, and PHA structure.

DH understands that change takes a long time, and the goal of transforming its portfolio under the asset repositioning goals of HUD has been to create a better quality of life for the families the agency serves through the following:

• Converting four properties to the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) Project-Based Voucher platform,
• Completed a corrective action plan (CAP) for its RAD PBV program,
• Streamlined operations by investing in technology and digital transformation initiative,
• Revised outdated policies and procedures throughout the organization, and
• Closed its last public housing development to become a voucher-only agency.

DH’s journey of chasing better by embracing its high-value organizational culture and entrepreneurial business practices has come with challenges, but the agency has persevered because of transformational leadership.

The agency is proud to launch a new national podcast, Beyond The Roof (BTF), with Dothan Housing. The podcast is dedicated to telling the stories of public housing residents and affordable housing professionals.

For more information on this achievement, don't hesitate to contact Communications Coordinator Leah Gunn via email at lgunn@dothanhousing.org.
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Leah Gunn
Dothan Housing
+1 334-794-6713
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Beyond The Roof with Dothan Housing Podcast Promo