Planning, Policy, Politics, and the Path to Office with Assemblywoman Katie Brennan, MCRP '12

This week on EJB talks, Dean Stuart Shapiro talks to Bloustein alumnus Katie Brennan MCRP '12, now an Assemblywoman in New Jersey's 32nd District. Katie reflects on how her early exposure to housing instability, volunteer work, and her undergraduate policy studies shaped her belief that “everything is a housing issue.” She recounts her experiences in Cincinnati's Over-the-Rhine neighborhood and her high school essay on housing instability, as well as her early positions in nonprofit roles and as chief of staff at the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, as helping shaped her view on housing policy and its limits. Her decision to run for office was driven by a desire to help shape policy directly rather than just implement it. She also discusses the constant tension between good policy and political reality, emphasizing the importance of understanding politics and finance in policy and planning. Her advice to students is to learn how money and public finance work, show up to local meetings to get a sense as to what's going on, and understand that planning, policy, and politics are inseparable if you want to create real change.