Gina Metrakas
Nearly half a year since President Joe Biden came into office, a familiar face has been tapped as Chief Operating Officer at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Gina Metrakas was the Executive Secretary of the HUD Agency Review Team for the Biden-Harris Transition team, and has been serving as senior advisor in the Office of the Secretary since January, having been promoted to COO in June.
Metrakas held several roles at HUD from 2011 to 2014, during the Obama administration. From September 2013 to October 2014, Metrakas worked as the White House Detroit Team senior advisor, reporting directly to then-President Obama, then-Vice President Biden, cabinet secretaries and other federal agencies. In this role, Metrakas focused on improving community development, public safety, education and social services working hand in hand with the mayors office, key public, private, philanthropic and community stakeholders in Detroit and Washington.
Metrakas spent close to five years with Quicken Loans with a focus on government affairs and urban revitalization, had two short stints with the National Housing Conference as a senior policy consultant, and was at the NYU Furman Center as Interim Director of Outreach and Peer Learning.
As COO, Metrakas will be tasked with providing leadership and strategic vision to the organization during a time in which the focus has been heavily on COVID-19. With things like the eviction moratorium making headlines, many anxious eyes will be shifting their focus to HUD.
