Affordable Workforce Housing Symposium Speakers

Bryan Greene is Vice President of Policy Advocacy at the National Association of REALTORS® where he oversees all legislative and regulatory advocacy on behalf of the association's 1.4 million members. Bryan joined NAR in November 2019, and spent his first year at NAR raising the association's profile in Washington and nationwide on all fair-housing-related policy matters as NAR's first Director of Fair Housing Policy.

Before joining NAR, Bryan served for ten years as the highest-ranking career official in HUD's Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO), where he oversaw the policy direction and operational management of the 600-person office enforcing the nation's housing anti-discrimination laws. Under Bryan's leadership as FHEO General Deputy Assistant Secretary, HUD pursued large-scale, high-profile cases that addressed systemic discrimination and provided widespread relief. Bryan also managed HUD's Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) and HUD's Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP), which together provide over $70 million to state and local government agencies and nonprofit organizations fighting discrimination in local communities.

Bryan has held other senior positions at HUD during his three decades at the agency, including a stint as the Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Affairs in HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R), where he worked to reduce regulatory barriers to affordable housing.

Bryan was the 2007 recipient of the Presidential Rank Award, the highest federal honor bestowed upon federal senior executives for outstanding service.

Bryan earned his degree in Government from Harvard University.

Focus: Introducing NAR and facilitating the discussion.

Shannon McGahn is the Chief Advocacy Officer for the National Association of REALTORS®, which represents more than 1.5 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

McGahn is responsible for managing NAR’s Federal Legislative and Political Affairs and Political Representative teams. She provides strategic advice on public policy issues impacting NAR and helps direct its Independent Expenditure and Public Advocacy programs.

Before joining America’s largest trade association, McGahn served as the staff director for the House Financial Services Committee and, prior to that, as a counselor to the United States Treasury Secretary. She also held communications roles for three members of House Leadership during her near 20-year Capitol Hill career.

In addition, McGahn served as Vice President for a D.C.-based public affairs firm and held the same position for a consulting firm focused on grassroots communication in major national media markets.

The first woman to hold the Chief Advocacy and formerly Senior Vice President of Government Affairs positions in NAR’s 110-year history, McGahn brings with her nearly two decades of experience working with or for the legislative and executive branches of the U.S. government. As she continues her career at NAR, she is focused on working on behalf of America’s 1.5 million REALTORS® to promote and protect property ownership for people across the United States.

McGahn earned her B.A. in History from The George Washington University. A native of Westerville, Ohio, she currently resides in Alexandria, Virginia, with her husband and two sons.

Focus: Introducing NAR and facilitating the discussion.

Jon Melchi (Melk-eye) is the Executive Director of the Building Industry Association of Central Ohio (BIA). The BIA has served the Central Ohio (BIA). The BIA has served the Central Ohio residential construction community for 80 years by representing nearly 500 builder, developer, and associate member companies. Before joining the BIA, Melchi served as the Vice President of Government and External Affairs with Heating, Air-conditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI). He has served on the Board of Directors for the Family Business Coalition, the Small Business Legislative Council and is currently the Vice Chair of the Ohio Society of Association Professionals.

Focus: The urgency for diverse workforce housing to address Ohio’s high demand and low inventory.

William Murdock serves as executive director of the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC). MORPC is Central Ohio’s regional council for local governments that provides services, funding, tools, and resources to more than 75 member communities comprised of counties, cities, villages, townships, and regional agencies. As the executive director, Murdock oversees innovative planning, services, and policies in transportation, planning, housing, land use, sustainability, and data.

Working with a board of over 140 local leaders and more than 20 community committees, Murdock reorganized MORPC to sharpen its focus on collaborative partnerships, proactive planning, and local government services. He is responsible for the development of MORPC’s long-range transportation plan that coordinates over $20 billion of transportation improvements across the region through 2050. Murdock spearheaded the major regional future scenarios effort known as insight2050 and the recently completed Regional Housing Strategy – both major public/private initiatives to prepare for Central Ohio’s significant growth and development – and innovative efforts such as the Smart Region Task Force and Midwest Connect Hyperloop effort.

Murdock also directed the creation of Central Ohio’s first regional sustainability and data agendas and strengthened MORPC’s advocacy efforts at the state and federal levels. He prioritizes efforts to build inclusion and diversity into regional work whether rural, urban, or suburban communities and to provide opportunities for young people to enter public service. Prior to joining MORPC, Murdock worked for over 15 years in state and local government in planning and economic development.

Murdock is actively involved in several local, state, and national organizations. Notably, he is secretary/treasurer for the Ohio Association of Regional Councils, a governor’s appointee to the DriveOhio Government Advisory Board, past president of The Ohio State University Knowlton School Alumni Society, and past chair of the National Association of Regional Councils’ (NARC) Executive Directors Council (EDC).

Murdock is a longtime resident of Central Ohio and proud Buckeye with a Bachelor of Science in Economics, Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, Master of City & Regional Planning, and Master of Science in Parks, Recreation & Tourism Administration all from The Ohio State University.

Focus: Public/private initiatives to prepare for Central Ohio’s growth, including the Insight2050 initiative and the Regional Housing Strategy.