Former employee of the Financial Health Network

Thea Garon is a Director in the Family and Financial Well-Being Division at the Urban Institute, focusing on household financial stability and economic security. She leads the division’s Financial Well-Being Practice Area and serves as director of the Financial Well-Being Hub, an initiative that informs evidence-based solutions to advance equity and improve households’ financial well-being.

Garon has nearly two decades of experience conducting research on financial health and well-being. Prior to joining the Urban Institute, she founded and led the Financial Health Network’s Financial Health Pulse, a national research initiative. She also led the development of the FinHealth Score®, a measurement framework that has become recognized as an industry standard. Garon’s research has been featured in top-tier media outlets, including the New York Times, the Atlantic, Forbes, the Associated Press, The Hill, and Vox.

Garon holds a master’s degree in Urban Planning from New York University’s Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service and graduated magna cum laude from Carleton College with a bachelor’s degree in History.