Audra Wilson took over as president and CEO of the Shriver Center five years ago this month. In her essay, Audra reflects on her tenure, which began as two transformative forces collided in real time: the COVID pandemic and the George Floyd uprisings.

Nearly 50 people gathered in Concord, New Hampshire for "Justice in Housing: New England," a unique opportunity to elevate a region that's often drowned out of the national discussion about housing.

• Housing Justice
• Housing Rights

For people returning home after incarceration, safe and stable housing isn’t just a basic need, it’s the foundation for rebuilding everything: work, family, community, and dignity. But in Illinois, housing remains one of the steepest and most unforgiving hurdles to reentry, and far too many face it alone.

• Reentry

Proposed budget cuts threaten fair housing enforcement, putting millions at risk of discrimination and instability. By slashing funding for frontline organizations and gutting HUD’s enforcement capacity, these changes would make it nearly impossible to hold bad actors accountable. At the Shriver Center, we’re fighting back — through legal advocacy, state-level solutions, and coalition efforts to protect people’s rights to safe, stable housing.

• Housing Rights

The Shriver Center's Hana Urban spoke to Stephanie Altman, director of healthcare justice and senior director of policy, to discuss what cuts to Medicaid could mean for Illinois and lessons from the first Trump administration.

• Access to Quality Care

The Shriver Center on Poverty Law is taking action in the face of unprecedented threats to democracy and the social safety net. Our 2025 legislative agenda bolsters the anti-poverty programs and benefits residents rely on. From providing cash assistance to struggling families and increasing worker protections, to removing barriers to housing; our proposed legislation creates a fairer state where everyone can thrive.

• Income Support
• Health Justice
• Housing Rights