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Kathy A. Possinger Housing Policy Fellowship

In 2019 PHFA created the Housing Policy Fellowship to further the Agency's mission and foster the development of new leaders in the housing and community development field. In 2021, the fellowship was renamed the Kathy A. Possinger Housing Policy Fellowship in honor of PHFA board designee and affordable housing champion Kathy A. Possinger. During her two-decade career, Possinger served Pennsylvanians through her housing work in both the public and private sectors. She held a variety of positions within the housing field including Special Advisor to the acting secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, Director of the Center for Community and Housing Development, Executive Director of Tri County Community Action, and the City of Harrisburg’s Deputy Director of Housing.

The goal of this program is to support the development of new perspectives and approaches to significant unmet housing or community development needs across Pennsylvania through a self-directed research project. The program will also cultivate new housing and community development leaders.

Fellowship Details

  • Stipend: Each fellow receives a stipend of $1,000 per month ($12,000 maximum), to be used for travel, conferences, technology, research tools, and/or administrative expenses.
  • Tenure: Maximum one year from award letter date.
  • Application Materials for the 2027 Fellowship cycle will be available in April. Please check back in April for further updates. 

Applicant Eligibility

The Fellowship is open to anyone who meets the following criteria:

  • A legal resident of Pennsylvania
  • Over the age of 18 years

Applicants do not need to have an institutional, organizational, or governmental affiliation. Applicants could be currently enrolled students (graduate, undergraduate, full-time, or part-time), employees of a non-profit, for-profit, or unit of government, or even self-employed.

Fellowship eligibility has been left intentionally broad to ensure it is accessible to all Pennsylvanians with a relevant research project in need of financial support.

Project Eligibility

Fellowship projects must have a connection to housing and community development in Pennsylvania. The findings from and application of Fellowship research should be relevant and useful in expanding PHFA’s and other housing policy groups' knowledge of the topic of study. Projects that utilize a unique perspective or innovative solution/methodology are encouraged. Additional details on project topics can be found in the Fellowship Application.

How to Apply

Application Materials for the 2027 Fellowship cycle will be available in April. Please check back in April for further updates.

In the meantime, please review the Fellowship FAQ and last year’s application for answers to common questions regarding the Fellowship. If you have questions that are not addressed in the FAQ, please contact PolicyFellowship@phfa.org.

Housing Policy Fellows and Projects

Evaine Sing: "Filling the Gaps" aims to develop a replicable, policy aligned model for pairing vacant, underutilized urban land with modular, cost-effective housing solutions in Pennsylvania's legacy cities, beginning with the City of Pittsburgh and adjacent Borough of Wilkinsburg as the focus of the study. The project will use a mixed-methods approach combining spatial analysis, policy research, stakeholder interviews, and strategy development to identify ideal sites, engage community partners, and model real-world feasibility and cost.

Zachary Phillips: This project seeks to identify and address the persistent challenges that veterans in Pennsylvania face in accessing both short-term and long-term housing solutions. Through a mixed-methods approach, including interviews, service network mapping, and policy analysis, this project will identify policy and program innovations that close existing gaps. Special attention will be given to the most vulnerable veterans: those disconnected from VA benefits, residing in underserved communities, or navigating multiple transition points such as military discharge, reentry from incarceration, or recovery from substance use.

Past Fellows

Jessica Aviva: Drawing on insights gathered through focus groups, interviews, and research on best practices, the Fair Housing Toolkit for Rural Pennsylvania describes actionable strategies and resources for municipalities, housing providers, and social service agencies to protect residents’ fair housing rights. Additionally, a corresponding data report pinpoints rural communities across PA experiencing the largest percentage increases in residents who are members of protected classes, identifying areas where fair housing education, outreach, and enforcement are especially critical. It includes a detailed spreadsheet with data for every county and municipal-level data for the 20 counties with the most significant demographic shifts.

Marrea Walker-Smith: Walker-Smith’s mixed-methods research study focused on twenty-five women residing in low-income housing in the City of Chester to examine the role of financial literacy in breaking barriers associated with low-income housing. Over the course of one year, the study integrated quantitative and qualitative approaches to capture both measurable outcomes and lived experiences. Two resident-hosted focus groups provided in-depth insights into participants’ perspectives, while structured data collection assessed the Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) of participants related to financial literacy. After analyzing the data, an E-book was designed with workshop lessons that housing counselors, community groups, and housing authorities can use to support financial stability, reduce eviction, and increase homeownership within this population.

Casey Fenoglio: Healthcare systems have become increasingly more invested in addressing housing insecurity and affordability in their communities. However, a lack of first-hand knowledge including best practices, barriers, and creative solutions for hospitals and healthcare systems to invest in housing limits the number of entities that are willing to do so. After identifying hospitals and healthcare systems that have invested in housing solutions in their communities, Fenoglio conducted in-depth interviews collected best practices, barriers and creative solutions for hospitals and healthcare systems to invest in housing culminating in the creation of “Hospital Investments in Housing: A Best Practice Guide.”

Penghui Zhang: In the final report “Reactivating Philadelphia Chinatown: Gentrification and Community Resilience, Zhang tackled the challenges of gentrification in Philadelphia’s Chinatown through an in-depth, place-based analysis of the community. His work included interviews with current residents and community groups, a mapping study, case studies of similar communities in the United States and abroad, culminating in a design proposal specifically targeted at meeting then housing needs of the multi-cultural population of Philadelphia’s Chinatown. His design draws on heterogeneity, modular adaptability, and incremental development to create an affordable housing design that remains accessible, culturally resonant and socially cohesive.

Jongwoong Kim: Dr. Kim’s project focuses on the real estate tax burden and its influence on aging in place, specifically in the context of Pennsylvania’s geography. The study employs geospatial perspectives to explore locations within the state which may pose challenges for aging in place due to real estate tax burdens. By analyzing various real estate tax-related indicators and constructing an index with these and other relevant economic and demographic variables, the study assesses the financial challenges of aging in place, identifying counties and census tracts that are favorable in terms of real estate tax burdens in the state of Pennsylvania. The project outcome includes the development of an Online GIS Dashboard and a Web Map intended for public access, aiming to provide valuable public policy implications and aid individuals in making informed decisions regarding aging in place within the state.

Julie Wilson: Ms. Wilson’s project explores how new approaches to cooperative housing might intervene in the escalating housing affordability crisis through the medium of documentary film. Specifically, the film will chronicle Common Roots’ work to establish a renting cooperative where renters are able to build equity by collectively governing and managing their homes. The film will situate Common Roots’ effort in the history of housing cooperatives in the U.S. and within the context of global cooperative movement. The film will be targeted to affordable housing professionals, grassroots actors and organizations, and general audiences interested in housing issues and/or cooperative enterprises.

Carolyn Ristau: Ms. Ristau's fellowship project entitled Residential Zoning by Race, explored the factors that influence the location of single-family and multi-family residential zoning districts in Pittsburgh over the past 100 years utilizing Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis. After reviewing a number of factors commonly used to explain zoning decisions and discrepancies, Ms. Ristau’s work suggests that redlining and race have significantly influenced the location of single-family vs. multi-family zoning districts in Pittsburgh. This difference in zoning type and location contributes to variations in housing access and affordability that have and continue to create and enforce racial housing disparities. As part of her fellowship, Ms. Ristau created a website to showcase the findings of her work.

Rachel Fawcett: Ms. Fawcett's fellowship project provides an overview of the community land trust model and existing literature, context, and insight into the existing CLTs in Pennsylvania, and an in-depth look into the State College Community Land Trust.