Lauren Dunton

Lauren Dunton is a Principal Associate with almost two decades of experience as a social science researcher evaluating programs and analyzing policies relating to homelessness, housing, workforce, and education across the country. As a seasoned Project Director, Dunton has led complex research and technical assistance projects for a range of federal agencies, state governments, and national foundation and philanthropic organizations. She has expertise in qualitative and mixed-method data collection and analysis, leading project teams, and authoring reports. 

Currently, she is the Project Director for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Family Options Study 12-Year Followup. That project is conducting a 12-year followup study of the families that participated in the Family Options Study to assess the long-term impacts of receiving housing assistance. As Project Director for HUD’s Exploring Homelessness Among People Living in Encampments and Associated Costs study, Dunton was the lead author of the nation’s first report on homeless encampments and has become a sought-after expert on the subject. Currently, she is the Principal Investigator for a study funded by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation that is documenting three place-based encampment interventions and identifying best practices. 

Expertise

• Qualitative and mixed method research, including instrument design, data collection, analysis, reporting, and dissemination
• Project leadership and management
• Homeless and housing assistance programs, unsheltered and family homelessness
• Implementation and program evaluations
• Site-based and remote evaluation technical assistance

Key Projects

• Colorado Statewide Homelessness Landscape Assessment (2023-present)
• Understanding Homeless Encampments: A Look at Encampment Interventions in Three Los Angeles Communities, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation (2022-present)
• Family Options 12-Year Study, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (2021-Present)
• Project Roomkey Program Evaluation, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation and the California Health Care Foundation (2021-2024)
• How TANF Agencies Support Families Experiencing Homelessness, HHS Office of Policy, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) (2017–2021)
• Exploring Homelessness Among People Living in Encampments and Associated Costs, HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy and Evaluation (ASPE) and HUD Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R) (2018‑2020)
• Understanding Rapid Re-housing, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (2016–2020)

Publications

• Fiore, N., Dunton, L., Gibson, S., and Collins, C. (2024). Evaluation of California’s Project Roomkey Program: Final Report. California Health Care Foundation and the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.

• Dunton, L., Fiore, N., Cuellar, M., Yoshioka-Maxwell, A., and Phillips, V. (2023). Report on Early Implementation – Understanding Homelessness Encampments: A Look at Encampment Interventions in Three Los Angeles Communities. The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. 

• Dunton, L., Yetvin, W., Fiore, N., & Kwan, C. (2023). From Policy to Practice: Responses to Homeless Encampments in Los Angeles. The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.
• Dunton, L., Khadduri, J., Burnett, K., Fiore, N., & Yetvin, W. (2021). City Approaches to Encampments and What They Cost. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Washington, DC.
• Khadduri, J., Dunton, L. & Brown, S.R. (2021). Understanding Rapid Re-housing: What Did We Learn? U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Washington, DC.
• Jefferson, A., Dunton, L., Thomas, H., Mahathey, A., & Khadduri, J. (2021). Understanding Rapid Re-housing through Participant Experiences. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Washington, DC.
• Fiore, N., Dunton, L., Khadduri, J., Wilkins, C., & Ng, B. (2020). Implementing the Los Angeles County Flexible Housing Subsidy Pool: Strategies and Lessons Learned. Report prepared for Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.