Emily Thaden joined ROC USA as its second President in July 2024.
Emily’s extensive background includes serving as the Vice President of National Strategy at Grounded Solutions Network, where she spent more than a decade scaling shared equity homeownership and community land trusts. During her tenure, she led the organization’s policy and research departments, notably developing financing solutions and field standardization initiatives to drive increased affordability and impact.
Most recently, Thaden served as Senior Director of Housing Solutions at Habitat for Humanity International. She is widely published on the topic of shared equity including in Housing Studies, Urban Geography, Journal of Architectural and Planning Research, Social Science Quarterly, Shelterforce, and numerous reports published by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. Beyond her professional accomplishments, she served as Vice Chair on the Board of Commissioners for Nashville’s housing authority, the Metropolitan Development & Housing Agency.
Emily received her Doctor of Philosophy degree in applied community research and her master’s degree in applied community research from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., and her bachelor’s degree in psychology, gender and sexuality studies from New York University.
Emily lives in Nashville, with her spouse and (too) many rescued pets. In her free time, you will find her hiking, experimenting in the kitchen, connecting with neighbors and friends and attempting to keep a garden alive.