Sasha Kergan

Sasha (Wisotsky) Kergan was appointed Deputy Secretary of Housing at the Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency (BCSH) by Governor Gavin Newsom in October 2021. She leads the coordination of housing programs, activities, and investments to preserve and expand affordable housing and address the state’s housing needs. Sasha works closely with BCSH departments that oversee all aspects of housing, including the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), the California Housing Finance Agency, and the Department of Real Estate. She also represents BCSH on several interagency efforts to advance equity and housing goals and to build more climate-friendly housing faster. Additionally, through close collaboration with state teams, relationship development with local governments, and ongoing partnership with federal partners, Sasha continues to work toward solutions and a stronger disaster recovery framework.

Prior to joining BCSH, Sasha held several positions at HCD from 2017 to 2021, where she last served as the Housing Policy Division Data and Innovation Chief. She integrated a data and research driven approach towards HCD priorities, led HCD’s role in shaping the development of an Executive Order that creates housing on excess state-owned property, and was one of the leaders of Homekey – a recognized model of adaptive reuse to sustain and rapidly expand housing for people exiting homelessness. Before joining HCD, Sasha worked at the Oakland Housing Authority, Resources for Community Development, and Quadel Consulting Corporation. She earned a Master’s Degree in Urban Planning from the University of California, Los Angeles and a Bachelor’s Degree in Urban and Community Development from the University of California, Berkeley.

AC25 Session: Responding to Natural Disasters: Resiliency and Recovery