Roundtable with U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development
Hybrid
Roundtable with U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development
HUD’s mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. The Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program is its major program for providing housing assistance to more than 2.3 million families. Despite this, the program is underutilized by housing providers, and people with approved vouchers struggle to find safe and desirable housing.
HUD representatives would like to invite your thoughts about how to improve the program to increase successful voucher utilization. Please join Regional Administrator Matthew Heckles at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, June 5th to learn about resources for landlords and property managers, followed by a roundtable discussion to provide feedback about impediments to participating in the HCV program.
Agenda/logistics:
10 a.m. – 10:15 a.m. – Welcome and introductions
10:15 a.m. – 11 a.m. – Informational presentation (WiFi/ Internet access preferred)
11 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. – Roundtable
11:45 a.m. – noon – follow up questions and closing
Join the conversation with:
Matthew Heckles & Ashley Petrella
Matthew Heckles was appointed as the Regional Administrator of HUD’s Mid-Atlantic region in February 2022 and is responsible for the oversight and delivery of HUD programs and services throughout Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, D.C. and West Virginia. He serves as HUD's liaison to elected officials, congressional delegations, city managers, stakeholders, and customers.
Prior to joining HUD, he served as the Assistant Secretary and Director of the Community Development Administration at the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development. In this capacity, he oversaw a range of operations and services from the administration and financing of single-family mortgage and multifamily development financing to housing rehabilitation and local government infrastructure programs. Most recently, his efforts centered on COVID-19 relief programs that offered forbearance for small businesses as well as tenant and homeowner assistance. Matthew Heckles worked in various positions at the Delaware State Housing Authority for more than 12 years before his work in Maryland.
Ashley Petrella became the Acting Deputy Regional Administrator of HUD’s Mid-Atlantic Region in March 2024, and is responsible for the oversight and delivery of HUD programs and services in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia. Ashley also serves as the Supervisory Management Analyst for the region’s Office of Field Policy and Management (FPM) and is the primary point of contact for stakeholder engagement, data analysis and customer service.
Prior to joining FPM, Ashley worked as a Program Analyst in Philadelphia’s Office of Public and Indian Housing for six years where she expanded partnerships in support of HUD’s strategic objectives and gained extensive experience with grant management, systems and risk analysis, and community outreach.
Ashley began her federal career as a student trainee with the Department of Homeland Security in Williston, Vermont. After graduating college, she continued her federal career with the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Citizenship and Immigration services, where she worked for the Office of Fraud Detection and National Security. Ashley was awarded Immigration Analyst of the year in 2012 for the Department of Homeland Security. Ashley has also worked for the Drug Enforcement Administration as a Program Information Specialist in Philadelphia, PA where she expanded her background in public affairs, investigations, and intelligence research.
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