National Organization of African Americans in Housing

NOAAH 2026
National Housing
Conference

"The American Dream at 250: Housing, Equity, and the Future for African Americans"

Dates July 7–8, 2026
Location Virginia Union University
Living & Learning Center
City Richmond, Virginia
Register Now at noaah.com

A Conference at the Crossroads of History and Now

As the nation marks 250 years of independence, NOAAH convenes its 2026 National Housing Conference in Richmond, Virginia—a city whose very geography bears the weight of American housing injustice. Over two days, practitioners, policymakers, residents, and advocates will engage in an honest reckoning: Has the promise of the American Dream ever been kept for African Americans? And what must we do, together, to keep it?

The conference features a signature interview-style format where NOAAH Board Members draw out the expertise of local Richmond practitioners, community leaders, national policy voices, and residents—placing community knowledge at the center of housing policy conversation, not the margins.

Program

Agenda at a Glance

Day One Tuesday, July 7, 2026 · Noon – 7:00 PM (Half Day)
12:00 – 1:00 PM
Registration, Lunch & Networking Continental buffet · African American Housing Timeline exhibit (1619–2026)
1:00 – 1:20 PM
Opening Ceremony & Conference Framing Call to Order, Invocation, Land Acknowledgment · Kevin Marchman, Managing Director of NOAAH
1:20 – 2:10 PM
National Keynote: "Housing as the Foundation of the American Dream at 250" NOAAH Board Member interviews a national housing policy leader
2:10 – 2:45 PM
Welcome from the City of Richmond Mayor of Richmond & Richmond City Council · Housing Richmond's Future
2:45 – 3:00 PM
Refreshment Break
3:00 – 4:15 PM
Opening Plenary: "From Slavery's Quarters to Gilpin Court: Richmond's Housing Story" Richmond historians, community voices & housing scholars in conversation with a NOAAH Board Member
4:15 – 4:45 PM
Audience Dialogue & Open Exchange Attendee Q&A · Preview of Day Two
5:00 – 7:00 PM
Evening Reception (Optional) Richmond cultural networking · NOAAH Prime member showcase · Historical photo display
Day Two Wednesday, July 8, 2026 · 8:30 AM – 6:00 PM (Full Day)
8:30 – 9:00 AM
Morning Coffee & Networking Light continental breakfast · Day One recap
9:00 – 9:15 AM
Day Two Opening Remarks Kevin Marchman, Managing Director of NOAAH
9:15 – 10:15 AM
Plenary: "From Gilpin Court to the Future: What RRHA Owes Richmond's Residents" RRHA Executive Director / Board Chair & Resident Advisory Board Representative
10:30 – 11:30 AM
"The Organizations Doing the Work: CDCs, Land Trusts & Mission-Driven Developers" Better Housing Coalition, Maggie Walker Community Land Trust, LISC Virginia & minority developers
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM
"Down Payments, Deed Restrictions & the Dream: Is Homeownership Still the Path to Wealth?" Virginia Housing, housing counselors, first-generation Black homeowners & fair lending advocates
12:15 – 1:15 PM
Working Luncheon: "Developers, Communities & Trust—Can the Gap Be Closed?" Sponsored lunch with featured dialogue · Regional developer & community organizer in conversation
1:15 – 2:00 PM
Working Session: Drafting the Richmond Housing Compact Four working groups · Right of Return · Black Homeownership · Anti-Displacement · Public Land Policy
2:00 – 2:30 PM
Report-Out: Richmond Housing Compact Draft Commitments Presentations · Response from Mayor's office, RRHA & agency leaders · Formal adoption
3:00 – 6:00 PM
Signature Closing Event: The Richmond Slave Trail Walk A three-hour guided walk of memory and witness · Ancarrow's Landing → Devil's Half Acre → African Burial Ground → Shockoe Bottom
6:00 PM
Closing Ceremony at the River's Edge Reading of the Richmond Housing Compact · Moment of silence · Announcement of NOAAH 2027 National Conference
Why Attend

Conference Highlights

🎤

Interview-Style Dialogue

A departure from traditional panel formats—NOAAH Board Members conduct live interviews that place community knowledge at the heart of every conversation.

📜

The Richmond Housing Compact

Leave with more than a conversation. Working groups will draft specific, time-bound commitments carried forward to city leadership, RRHA, and Virginia's legislative delegations.

🗺️

The Richmond Slave Trail Walk

A signature three-hour guided walk tracing the path of enslaved people through Richmond—one of the only documented walks of its kind in the United States.

🏛️

Historic Setting

Hosted at Virginia Union University's Living & Learning Center, an HBCU founded in 1865 on the grounds of a former Civil War prison camp.

"We did not come to Richmond only to remember. We came to be changed by what we remember—and to go home and change what is still broken."
— NOAAH 2026 Conference Closing

Join Us in Richmond

July 7–8, 2026 · Virginia Union University · Richmond, Virginia

Register at noaah.com