Housing Claremont Board
Ilsa Lund, President
Ilsa is a Claremont resident who brings a wealth of knowledge and experience working on issues related to housing and homelessness. As President of Housing Claremont she has been integral to the foundation of our organization and programs. She has taken the lead on programs related to local schools and children, and has helped to forge a relationship with the Claremont Unified School District.
She has worked in the non-profit field since 1996, dedicating her career to agencies in Minnesota, New York, Wyoming and California committed to addressing poverty, its impacts and its root causes. She has worked in a variety of roles at Larkin Street Youth Services since 2004, and currently serves as the Chief of Strategy. Ilsa has worked in many aspects of non-profit management, including oversight of public grants and contracts, project management, and implementation of strategic initiatives.
Nancy Treser Osgood, Secretary
Nancy Treser Osgood was elected to the Claremont Unified School District Board of Education in 2013, and she serves as an advocate for homeless students and their families.
An active parent and community volunteer, Nancy has served on the boards of the Claremont Educational Foundation (CEF) and Claremont After School Program (CLASP). She attended Pomona College and the Claremont School of Theology and has been a Claremont resident since 1988.
Monique H. Ott, Treasurer
After graduating Pitzer College, Monique traveled the United States conducting research on head injury in sports before finally settling back in Claremont to raise her four children. In 2004, she got her real estate broker license to help more residents become homeowners by founding Advent Property Management and Real Estate. In 2017 Monique served as a board member of Community Relations at Citrus Valley Association of Realtors where she was selected to represent legislation to California senators and representatives to protect homeowner rights. At the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, Monique not only opened the doors to HOTT Homes Real Estate and Property Management, but also joined Housing Claremont not only to provide insight into housing issues as they relate to buying and selling property, but also to better understand the the relationship between landlords and tenants.
“As a board member it will be my duty to motivate builders to provide affordable housing and work with the City of Claremont to write ordinances that will allocate a portion of every building to affordable housing.”
Lynne Marsenich
As a long time resident of Claremont, Lynne brings years of both professional and volunteer experience in social work to the board. She has served on Claremont’s Committee on Aging and Human Services Commission. Lynne has taken the lead in helping to form Housing Claremont’s initiatives relating to senior housing and homelessness.
Lynne is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with her own consulting practice based in Claremont. She is a frequent co-author on academic articles on implementing evidence-based practices in social services.
Zachary Courser
Zach became engaged in homelessness issues through volunteering for the Claremont Homelessness Advocacy Program (CHAP), having served as their grant writer. In January of 2019 he was asked by former Claremont council member Joe Lyons to spearhead creating a new non-profit, envisioned as part of the city of Claremont’s Homelessness Services Plan. The result has been the creation of Housing Claremont, focused on advocacy, education, and coordination of housing and homelessness issues in the Claremont community.
Zach teaches public policy at Claremont McKenna College, and co-directs the Policy Lab. He is a former commissioner on Claremont’s Traffic & Transportation Commission, and serves on the boards of Claremont Heritage and Pilgrim Place.
Rev. Gene Boutilier
Rev. Gene Boutilier, 83 years old, is the 2021 resident Moderator of Pilgrim Place in Claremont. He was the founding Executive Director of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, and for several years initial Administrator of the Los Angeles Emergency Food and Shelter Program Local Board, the highest-funded “FEMA” Board in the nation. He was founding chair of the L.A. “War on Poverty” Community Action Board. He has been in leadership and start-up roles in many advocacy movement groups confronting poverty, homelessness, hunger, and the suppression of immigrants, low-wage workers, and voters. The settings of this work have been national, state-wide, regional as well as local.
For decades he was in a variety of roles in support of unionization and worker rights for farm workers, including five years lobbying in Washington D.C.
Gene is a member of the Board of Mission and Social Action at Claremont United Church of Christ. While he has at times pastored congregations, more of his career has been in multi-faith approaches to social justice and Council of Churches leadership. Gene has been a volunteer staff person in numerous political and ballot-initiative
Recent Housing Claremont Fellows
Many thanks to our recent fellows who have provided invaluable assistance and energy in advancing Housing Claremont’s mission.
Gwen Tucker
Gwen Tucker served as our Joseph Lyons Fellow in the spring of 2023 focused on the Tenant Protection Ordinance that prevailed in Claremont. Gwen brought a wealth of organizing experience and passion for affordable housing.
Gwen is a current junior at Scripps College majoring in Politics and Sociology. Originally from Evanston, Illinois, she spent her high school years organizing with Chicago’s diverse Jewish community around issues of community safety, immigration justice, and economic justice. Since starting college in Claremont, Gwen has become passionate about meaningfully engaging college students in local issues. As the lead organizer for Inclusive Claremont, a sister pro-housing group, she has worked with students and community members alike to advocate for affordable housing and tenant protections in Claremont.
She is proud to have been a part of powerful efforts to amplify community support for the Larkin Place development, and to pass an ordinance restricting unjust renovation evictions at City Council. Gwen believes strongly in the power of building political coalitions, making an impact at the local level, and pursuing justice in all facets of life.
Jessica Gallegos
Jessica Gallegos is a student at Claremont McKenna College, studying public policy and environmental analysis. Through an internship with Tenants of LA, Jessica worked on raising awareness about tenants rights.
She was also a member of the La Habra Water Guardians and helped promote the importance of water conservation in the community.
Virginia Paschal
Virginia Paschal is a student at Pomona College, studying Public Policy and Environmental Analysis. She has been a student advocate for affordable housing issues in Claremont for the past four years. She has worked with Councilman Jed Leano on housing advocacy both within the City of Claremont and at the regional level, attending SoCal Association of Governments meetings and advocating for Measure H funds for projects such as the affordable housing development on Baseline Road. She has worked with Housing Claremont since early 2021, assisting in report writing and ADU development work.
Virginia has also worked with the Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s Office of Sustainability on electrification projects to meet UN Sustainable Development Goals and with the City of Alameda on efforts to fund the City’s Climate Action and Resiliency Plan. She is currently working for the Farm and Energy Initiative at Vermont Law School to make information on statewide farmland solar policy more accessible to stakeholders. Following her graduation, she hopes to continue to work in the realm of housing advocacy and climate resiliency at the city level.
Jordan Hoogsteden
Jordan Hoogsteden is a student at Pomona College studying Public Policy Analysis and Computer Science. Through coursework, Jordan has researched Measure H and evaluated the Los Angeles County Homeless Initiative strategies. Jordan has also worked as a District Intern for California State Senator Scott Wiener. Through this opportunity, Jordan has advocated for progressive housing legislation while connecting constituents with housing resources. Jordan has been a fellow with Housing Claremont this past year, focusing on ADU development, Claremont’s Inclusionary Housing Ordinance, and website expansion for the organization.