2024 Kathy A. Possinger Housing Policy Fellows Announced
Funded research will benefit policymakers and the affordable housing industry
HARRISBURG, PA – The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency has named Henry Penghui Zhang and Casey Fenoglio as its 2024 Kathy A. Possinger Housing Policy Fellowship recipients. Both Zhang and Fenoglio will receive a financial stipend of up to $12,000 during the year to conduct research benefiting the affordable housing industry. This is the second time that two fellowships have been awarded in the same year; one is designated for an academic-led project and one for a practitioner-led project.
“PHFA supports this housing fellowship because it produces a number of important benefits,” said PHFA Executive Director and CEO Robin Wiessmann. “Clearly, PHFA and the state’s housing industry gain from the research that is undertaken. Plus, the fellow benefits from the professional experience and valuable contacts made during the year-long research position. We’re proud to continue our housing fellowship again this year.”
Henry Penghui Zhang currently is a second-year master of architecture student at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the winner of several fellowships and awards, and he has studied in Paris under Professor Annette Fierro. He holds a master of fine arts degree in interior design from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, and a bachelor’s degree in software engineering from Tianjin Polytechnic University in China. He has an ongoing internship at Gensler Chicago focused on a residential project in Miami, which is providing him experience on housing design and community development.
Zhang’s research project plans to address the pressing issue of gentrification in Philadelphia’s Chinatown while seeking to promote harmonious conditions in the diverse community. The primary audience for this research includes policymakers, urban planners, community leaders, housing advocates, and stakeholders invested in equitable community development. His research will produce policy recommendations to combat gentrification, sustainable urban planning strategies that prioritize inclusivity, and proposals for inclusive community development initiatives that will celebrate cultural diversity and preserve the community’s Asian heritage.
Casey Fenoglio is the director of community engagement at Pottstown Hospital. In that position, she is developing the hospital’s first Community Wellness Department, conducting regular community health needs assessments, and partnering with local non-profit organizations, government, schools, and businesses to strengthen community health programs. Prior positions include being a health promotion specialist with the American Lung Association and a research assistant at the University of Pennsylvania. She holds a master of public health degree from West Chester University and a bachelor of science degree in chemistry from Millersville University. Fenoglio is the author and co-author of several peer-reviewed articles and presentations.
Fenoglio’s fellowship project will develop a how-to guide for hospitals and healthcare systems that plan to invest in housing by conducting a literature review, as well as phone, email and in-person interviews with hospital’s that have already invested in housing. While many articles discuss the ways in which hospitals can invest in housing, there is little information available on navigating legal challenges, common barriers that hospitals and their partners encounter, and overall first-hand experiences that help guide them through the process. Her research findings will aim to increase the number of hospitals willing to invest in housing.
The stipend provided to both these researchers through PHFA’s housing policy fellowship can be used for a variety of activities supporting the fellows’ approved research, including interviews with experts, securing resources and study materials, and travel for attending relevant conferences.
This is the fifth year of PHFA’s housing policy fellowship. In 2021, the fellowship was renamed the Kathy A. Possinger Housing Policy Fellowship in honor of PHFA board designee and affordable housing champion Kathy Possinger. She was a passionate affordable housing advocate who served Pennsylvanians for two decades through her work in both the public and private sectors.
About PHFA
The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency works to provide affordable homeownership and rental housing options for older adults, low- and moderate-income families, and people with special housing needs. Through its carefully managed mortgage programs and investments in multifamily housing developments, PHFA also promotes economic development across the state. Since its creation by the legislature in 1972, it has generated more than $17.6 billion of funding for more than 195,250 single-family home mortgage loans, helped fund the construction of 103,328 rental units, distributed approximately $289 million to support local housing initiatives, and saved the homes of more than 50,860 families from foreclosure. PHFA programs and operations are funded primarily by the sale of securities and from fees paid by program users, not by public tax dollars. The agency is governed by a 14-member board.
Contact:
Scott Elliott
717-649-6522 (cell)
selliott@PHFA.org
