Equity in HUD’s Learning Agenda

Barry L. Steffen
Galen Savidge-Wilkins
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not represent the official positions or policies of the Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R), the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), or the U.S. Government.

Evaluation planning across the federal government is beginning to transform to implement the vision and requirements of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 (Evidence Act). Evaluation and evidence building, along with core program activities, also are subject to a recent Executive Order from President Biden that calls for affirmatively advancing equity, civil rights, racial justice, and equal opportunity across the federal government.

This paper provides context for the colloquy by summarizing the implementation of evidence building and equity initiatives at HUD. The authors are HUD staff who have been substantively engaged in implementing the Evidence Act, including developing HUD’s Learning Agenda: Fiscal Years 2022– 2026 (HUD PD&R, 2022a), which aligns with HUD’s Fiscal Year 2022–2026 Strategic Plan to place evidence building on a strategic footing, and in supporting the development of HUD’s Equity Action Plan under the Executive Order.