Michele Perez

With 25 years at the field and headquarters levels of service-driven agencies, Michele Perez has led programs and directed operations across government, non-profit and philanthropic organizations. In February 2021, Michele was appointed to serve as the Assistant Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Field Policy and Management. In this role she oversees the department’s regional and field offices as they deliver on HUD’s mission to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. Michele launched her civil service in HUD’s Midwest Regional office in 1999 and is pleased to return to federal service as part of the Biden-Harris Administration.

Prior to joining HUD, Michele served as the Chief Operating Officer of the Tahirih Justice Center where she led strategy execution which supported immigrant survivors of gender-based violence seeking asylum in the United States. Her portfolio included talent management, organizational development, finance, operations and risk management, and information technology. Michele joined Tahirih from the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (formerly OPIC), where she served as Vice President of Management and Administration, as well as a Senior Advisor to the President and CEO for Diversity, Inclusion and Engagement. Her leadership enabled partnerships with developing economies globally, encouraged more open, democratic and stable societies and improved the living conditions for low-income communities worldwide. Michele has also worked at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), where she served as a key advisor and consultant to the VA Chief of Staff on human resources, strategic planning and financial management. During her tenure at VA, she was also charged with execution and coordination of workforce enterprise strategies for the Veterans Health Administration, the nation’s largest integrated healthcare system. Prior to VA, Michele spent nearly ten years in HUD’s Midwest Regional office in Chicago, IL, where she served as a Community Builder and later ensured the payment of prevailing wages in HUD-funded construction throughout the six state region. 

Michele holds a BS in Human Services from Cornell University and an MS in Management from the Catholic University of America. She speaks Spanish, French and Kreyol, and grew up in a Haitian and El Salvadoran household of immigrants in Miami, FL.