The best ideas come from the American people. Everyone has a story to tell, everyone has a part to play.
All across the country, ordinary Americans are doing extraordinary things in their communities to out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world. Every week, the White House invites these Champions of Change to share their ideas to win the future.
This week, the White House honors 14 women veterans as Champions of Change. After honorably serving their country, these individuals went on to provide exemplary leadership in many areas at the local, state, regional, or national level.
Becky Kanis '91 is among this week's group. She graduated from the Academy 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 Beckys leadership, it has already helped communities find permanent housing for more than 37,000 homeless Americans, including 13,000 veterans.