Jess Hudson is the Senior Public Policy Officer at Destination: Home and brings a decade of experience in policy advocacy and coalition building across the Bay Area. Prior to joining Destination: Home, she served as Public Policy Manager at United Way Bay Area, where she led legislative advocacy, regional coalition work, and community-informed policy efforts. Her past roles include serving as Communications Director for the San Mateo County Commission on the Status of Women, as well as years of direct advocacy supporting low-income families, immigrant communities, and others most impacted by housing instability.
Jess’s commitment to this work is grounded in her belief that policy is most effective when it is shaped by lived experience. She enrolled at San Francisco State University as a low-income single parent navigating safety-net systems while studying political science. Reading policy briefs on poverty from the food bank line profoundly shaped her understanding of how policy succeeds – and where it fails to address lived realities. Since then, she has dedicated her career to advancing evidence-based, community-responsive solutions that strengthen safety nets, prevent homelessness, and promote long-term housing stability for vulnerable neighbors.
A Bay Area resident since 2012, Jess enjoys spending time on local hiking trails, tending to her garden, exploring new coffee shops and thrift stores, and being with her two children and four cats.