White House Author

Becky Kanis graduated from West Point in 1991 and served for nine years as an Officer in the US Army. Unwilling to continue deceiving her colleagues about her sexual orientation, she resigned her commission in 2000 and soon began working to end homelessness in New York City. After leading an effort that successfully reduced street homelessness in Times Square by over two thirds, Becky became the Director of the 100,000 Homes Campaign, a grassroots nationwide effort to find and house 100,000 of the most chronic and vulnerable homeless people by July 2014. The Campaign is coordinated by the New York City-based non-profit organization, Community Solutions. Under Becky’s leadership, it has already helped communities find permanent housing for more than 37,000 homeless Americans, including 13,000 veterans. In 2008, Becky became the founding board chair of Knights Out, a non-profit group of West Point alumni coming out as LGBT in opposition to the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy that was overturned during President Obama’s first administration. In 2012, she co-founded The Social Change Agency with her wife, Christine, to support non-profit leaders in creating thriving teams that change the world.