Meghan Lundeen is the community relations/special projects manager for the Peoria Housing Authority, responsible for the daily flow of information to the media and the preparation of reports of PHA activity. Upon her arrival, Lundeen created and implemented a new marketing campaign that has helped to improve public perception of the housing authority.
She is a role model at PHA, where her passion for her job helps her connect with people instantly. In less than a year, she has helped to develop and grow a program for low-income residents, employing innovative strategies to help struggling families get back on their feet. One of these was the Access to Resource and Referral Opportunities (ARRO), which began as a small task force and eventually grew into a community-wide program.
Earlier this year, Lundeen led nine interns door-to-door to reach nearly 400 public housing residents, asking about their struggles and helping them out, one family at a time. This, in addition to her work on the ARRO program, is done outside of her duties at PHA. With her facilitation, 30 low-income residents in Peoria are now signed up for college courses, and several others were able to pay off old debts and obtain jobs.
Lundeen also worked with Peoria Public Schools District 150 to facilitate a GED program at Taft and Harrison homes. When the program was cut from the budget, she put together a business plan to work with major players in the community to get the program funded.
Needless to say, Lundeen is quite active in her community. She is a member of the communications team of the Peoria Charter School Initiative, helping with everything from press conferences to reaching the $1 million mark that was required for the school to open in 2010.
She volunteers for Peoria Promise and serves as president of the organization’s Young Leaders Advisory Board. She also serves on the Veterans Advisory Board, the Promise Neighborhoods Stakeholders Committee and the Money Smart Marketing Team, and helps with the Arthritis Foundation’s annual Bone Bash. She is involved with the Public Relations Association, Young Professionals Organization of Greater Peoria and Women in Leadership. Lundeen is a Chamber Ambassador for the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce and an instructor at Dance Connection in Bartonville. iBi
