Graduate School
University of Massachusetts Boston

Undergraduate School
Assumption College

Mentor
Ben Forman, Policy Director, MassINC, Rappaport Institute Advisory Board Member and former Rappaport Policy Fellow and Julie Miller, Research Scientist, MIT AgeLab and former Rappaport Policy Fellow

Agency
Department of Neighborhood Development, Boston

Supervisor
Jessica Boatright, Deputy Director, Neighborhood Housing Development Division

Description of Fellowship
Setarreh worked with the Neighborhood Housing Development Division within the City of Boston’s Department of Neighborhood Development. Setarreh analyzed costs to operate supportive housing for older adults and created a descriptive analysis of findings with benchmarks to inform future DND underwriting policies. Setarreh provided input into the City’s annual Request for Proposals for housing development, and she authored guidance for DND development officers working through proposals with supportive housing developers. In her second project, Setarreh investigated creative approaches to finance affordable housing development and preservation with municipal funding sources.

Following research and interviews with housing leaders in cities nationally, Setarreh assembled findings and recommendations for DND.