When co-interim CEOs Maegan Scott and Jessica Venegas of Funders Together for Housing Justice (FTHJ) meet to reflect on their time leading the organization, their conversation reveals deep alignment on values, shared purpose, and an unwavering commitment to housing justice. What follows is an excerpt from that exchange about leadership, lived experience, and hope for the movement.

What pulled you into housing and racial justice work in the first place? 

Maegan: 
I grew up in a social-justice-oriented family—activists, church leaders, organizers. Housing and homelessness were always personal for me. When I was twelve, our house burned down, and we had to rely on family and community to get back on our feet. I’ve always known what instability feels like. 

Jessica: 
Same here. My mom was a single mother, and we moved constantly. I’m first-generation Latina—my family immigrated here from Mexico—and there was a lot of instability. If it hadn’t been for our big family, we probably would have been homeless. 

Housing became the thing that anchored me. It’s what made everything else possible. 

Meagan: Housing is about belonging and restoration. And for me, so is justice. 
 
What does co-leadership look like in practice for you two? 

Jessica: 
When we first started, I told myself, “Okay, I can do this—I’ve read the books, I’ve seen the models.” But it’s one thing to read about co-leadership and another to live it. 

Maegan: 
It’s like dating. 

Jessica: 
(laughs) It really is. You go in thinking you know what it’ll be like, but you don’t know until you start. 

Maegan: 
Right, and you hope you like each other. 

Jessica: 
And we do. We trust each other, and that makes it work. 

Maegan: 
Trust is the whole thing. I’ve always believed in distributed leadership, in building leaderful ecosystems. Leadership shouldn’t live only at the top. 

Jessica: 
What makes it work for us is that we’re aligned on values. We both believe in centering people and creating the conditions where everyone can thrive and stand in their own agency. 
 
Leading in a political environment (authoritarianism, criminalization) — how do you navigate that? 

Maegan: 
It’s wild sometimes—leading in this environment. There’s constant pressure, especially when we’re being attacked not just as leaders but as women of color in America. 

Jessica: 
I feel that deeply. My instinct is to protect everyone—the staff, the organization, the work. People sometimes mistake that for retreat, but really, it’s preparation. 

Maegan: 
Exactly. It’s survival work. We’re seeing state-sanctioned violence go unchecked, and we’re still expected to make decisions and lead with clarity. It takes a lot of self-awareness. 

Jessica: 
I visited a museum in Portugal that used to be a political prison during a dictatorship that lasted seventy years. It reminded me that authoritarianism doesn’t end quickly. We have to prepare for the long haul. 

Maegan: 
And that’s where our relationship matters most. We didn’t know each other until just over a year ago, but we’ve had to build trust quickly—real trust. 
 
How do you define housing justice? 

Jessica: 
When people ask me what housing justice means, my answer is simple: I get to choose how and where I live, and with whom I want to live. 

Maegan: 
I love that. For me, housing justice is about righting centuries of harm and disinvestment. It’s recognizing that everyone has the right to a safe, meaningful place to live—and that when people are safely housed, liberation becomes possible. 

Jessica: 
Yes. Liberation is the word. 
 
What gives you hope about the road ahead? 

Maegan: 
There’s a hum of defiance in the air. People are saying, “We will not back down.” I see that energy in our team; no one wants to hide from this work. That gives me hope. 

Jessica: 
Me too. And I think about my ancestors a lot—especially around Día de los Muertos. I wonder what they expect of me. I don’t want to drop the ball. I want to carry their work forward. 

Maegan: 
That’s beautiful. 

Jessica: 
It’s all connected. We’re just the current iteration of everyone who came before us, and we have to keep that chain going. 

Maegan: 
Exactly. The movement is generational. 

Jessica: 
So when we say to our members and partners, “Come with us,” that’s what we mean. This isn’t just our fight—it’s everyone's. 

Two leaders, one shared conviction: housing justice is liberation work. As Maegan Scott and Jessica Venegas continue to guide Funders Together for Housing Justice through this transition, they show what it looks like to lead with courage, trust, and hope—together. 

Edited for clarity and length.