Frank S. Alexander, an Emory University law professor who has helped guide the nation out of the mortgage crisis by advising government officials on new lending policies, will reexamine the basic American ethos of housing and homeownership in light of the Great Recession, Wed., Feb. 20 at 12:30 p.m. in Emory Law's Tull Auditorium.

Hosted by Emory's Center for the Study of Law and Religion (CSLR), the lecture is free and open to the public. A free lunch will be provided to those who sign up by Feb. 15. Sign up.

"Before the Great Recession, we warned people not to 'bet the house' or 'mortgage their future' when buying or refinancing their homes," said Alexander, Sam Nunn Professor of Law and CSLR founding director. "Now more than ever, it's time for people to probe the goals of homeownership and have a better understanding of the competing stories of housing as investments and as shelter."

The director of CSLR's Project on Affordable Housing and Community Development, Alexander works to provide safe, decent, and affordable housing for all Americans.  He is one of the nation's leading experts on the mortgage crisis, affordable housing, and homelessness, and has testified before the U.S. Congress and worked with state and local governments throughout the mortgage foreclosure crisis to develop better lending policies. He also is co-founder of the Center for Community Progress, an organization that helps U.S. communities integrate vacant, abandoned, and blighted properties back into their economic and civic life.   

The lecture, "Housing America's Families: Investments, Risks, and Families," is the annual Currie Lecture in Law and Religion.

More details, including parking information at the CSLR website.