Krosbie Carter has been working to affect community development and housing policy since graduating with her BA from Evergreen State College in 2010. A central belief she holds is that “to affect change, you need to be part of the mechanism working to create it.” This is a life motto she learned in her first elective in the MPA program.

Krosbie found her way to the MPA after an internship with the City of Olympia, working on homelessness and housing issues. Her mentor and boss, Anna Schlecht, had completed her MPA at Evergreen and told Krosbie that as a woman, an MPA was key to not hitting a glass ceiling in local government. Krosbie took this advice to heart and was accepted to the MPA program, where she focused on local government and housing policy. Krosbie credits the strong emphasis on systems thinking in the MPA in helping guide where her career has gone.

Since graduating in 2017, Krosbie has been working on housing issues, ranging from homelessness, missing middle issues, to real estate. As Director of Thurston Thrives, she led a coalition of over 100 organizations, both private and public, to collaborate on initiatives to improve the health of our community, with affordable and accessible housing being at the center.

Recently, Krosbie started a new role as the Housing Policy Advisor for WA Department of Natural Resources. This is a new role for DNR, which does not traditionally work in the housing world, but one the Commissioner of Public Lands believes is vital to helping address the statewide housing crisis. Krosbie is tasked with finding innovative ways to leverage residentially zoned DNR land to create affordable housing. While there are many reasons behind the housing crises, the price and availability of buildable land is a key piece of the problem. Krosbie hopes that by leasing residentially zoned land for housing, DNR will be able to reduce a significant cost of building, making it more affordable for renters and homeowners. Using DNR land for housing also means more affordable home choices near schools, jobs, and transit, and more options for first-time homebuyers. It also reduces sprawl into our forests and farmlands.

The MPA not only taught Krosbie the skills to be successful in her role, but also the confidence to look outside the traditional lens of housing solutions, to see what connections can be made that address the whole system of housing and community benefit.