FRANCESCA D’ANDREA, FINANCE DIRECTOR
Program: Master of Public Administration
Email: None Submitted

Francesca D’Andrea (MPA ’19) moved to Washington, D.C. to pursue a graduate degree of Public Administration with a concentration in nonprofit management in August 2017. Francesca grew up in Rhode Island, where she attended college for a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology.

After graduating, Francesca spent two years serving her community as an educator through the AmeriCorps program. Through the federally funded volunteer program, Francesca spent two terms of service working in a coalition of bilingual charter schools as an after-school Spanish teacher and at an environmental nonprofit where she led children to search the waters of RI for interesting critters and teachable moments. Continuing her focus on community service, Francesca spent the last three years working as a Case Manager for adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

Francesca finds civil service and community building crucial elements to her personal and professional life and is excited to work together with the GSC members to serve her fellow graduate student community in the School of Public Affairs as Finance Director.

TANAR WRIGHT-SACKEY, DEPUTY FINANCE DIRECTOR
Program: Master of Public Administration
Email: None Submitted

Tanar is a second year MPA student with a concentration in public management graduating in May 2019. She completed her undergrad degree at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in Criminal Justice and Homeland Security . Her professional background is mainly in criminal justice and law enforcement.

Tanar is a Girl Scout troop leader of the Nations Capital troop #5852. Her favorite color is pink and she has a dog named Star who is 10 years old (she’s had her since the dog was 8 weeks old). She own a Harley Davidson motorcycle that she enjoys riding when the weather allows. One of the things Tanar is truly passionate about is serving people and she believes that is apart of her purpose in life.

ANNALIESE JOHNSON, COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR
Program: Master of Public Policy
Email: None Submitted

Annaliese Johnson is pursuing a Master’s of Public Policy, with a concentration in social policy. She is the Director of Communications for the School of Public Affairs Graduate Student Council. Before joining the AU community, Annaliese graduated summa cum laude from Rutgers University, with a Bachelor’s of Arts and Sciences in Cultural Anthropology and History.

Her studies sparked an interest in US political and social movements, particularly past feminist and reproductive rights and justice movements. Her honors thesis on New Jersey women’s unique abortion access before and immediately following Roe v. Wade earned her the Margaret Atwood Judson Prize for best history honors thesis written by a woman.

Upon graduating, Annaliese worked as a Community Organizer for NARAL Pro-Choice Maryland. Among her other duties at NARAL Pro-Choice Maryland, Annaliese managed the Emergency Contraceptive (EC) Access Project, which sought to improve access to over-thecounter EC products in public colleges and universities in Maryland.

In this capacity, she implemented a state-wide survey of over 350 pharmacies to document barriers to over-the-counter EC products and inform lobbying efforts in the Maryland General Assembly. Her team’s efforts paid off, with the University of Maryland, College Park implementing 24/7 EC access in their campus stores, though the bill she helped draft did not make it to the floor of the MD General Assembly.

Outside of classes, Annaliese can be found running on the Capital Crescent Trail, baking tasty treats, or rewatching Parks and Rec episodes. Annaliese is passionate about advancing reproductive justice and freedom, and looks forward to advocating for SPA students and the AU community.

KATHERINE SLEDGE, CHIEF OF STAFF
Program: Master of Public Administration
Email: None Submitted

Katherine Sledge is a Tennessee native and graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. After graduating with her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, Katherine worked at an environmental group where she provided administrative, technical, and logistical support for radiological projects across the country.

Katherine is now perusing her Master of Public Administration at American University with a concentration in Applied Politics: Women, Public Policy, and Political Leadership and is serving as the Chief of Staff for the School of Public Affairs Graduate Student Council. She has recently worked as the Federal Advocacy Intern at the National Alliance to End Homelessness, where she coordinated state delegations in the Alliance’s Capitol Hill Day.

Katherine usually has multiple print and audiobooks in progress at any given time and unwinds with long walks and re-runs of The West Wing.

LAUREN RICCI, VICE PRESIDENT
Program: Master of Public Administration
Email: None Submitted

Lauren Ricci is a second year Master of Public Administration (MPA) candidate at the American University, School of Public Affairs, concentrating in Nonprofit Management. Currently, Lauren is Vice President of the School of Public Affairs Graduate Student Council. She currently works at the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) as a policy intern, advocating for federal policies that promote and preserve safe, affordable, and decent housing, which she views as critical tools for addressing poverty and achieving social justice.

Previously, Lauren worked as a Summer Associate at Opportunity@Work, a social enterprise with a mission to expand access to career opportunities so that all Americans can work, learn, and earn to their full potential. During her time there, she supported the development of an innovative, learner-centered financing model for sectoral workforce development programs, with an initial focus on the IT sector.

Previously, she supported local community stakeholders in the implementation of federal grants as a Training and Technical Assistance Specialist with the Office for Victims of Crime Training and Technical Assistance Center. She began her career providing direct services to survivors of human trafficking as an advocate and a hotline supervisor with the National Human Trafficking Hotline.

When Lauren isn’t working or studying, you can find her exploring the city with her dog Nellie, a precocious and loveable 10-month-old mini goldendoodle. She grew up in North Kingstown, Rhode Island and holds a B.A. in International Affairs from The George Washington University Elliott School of Public Affairs.

TBA, SCHOOL OF PROFESSIONAL & EXTENDED STUDIES LIAISON
GRADUATE LEADERSHIP COUNCIL – American University

TAYLOR WEBSTER, TREASURER
Program: Master of Strategic Communication
Email: tw8617a@american.edu

Taylor Webster is pursuing her Master of Strategic Communication with a focus in crisis management and communication. In addition to serving as treasurer of the graduate School of Communication, she also works with Professor Dario Bernardini as a teaching and research assistant.

Prior to joining American University, Taylor went to the University of Louisville where she graduated with a Bachelor’s in Communication. While at Louisville, Taylor played lacrosse, served as President of the Student Athletes of Color Club, worked as Features editor for the school paper and wrote sports and opinion articles for the school paper. Taylor has also worked for a major public relations firm, MWW and a local Louisville television station, MetroTV. Taylor continues to write articles for blogs, newspapers and websites while at American.   

As President of the Student Athletes of Color Club, Taylor collaborated with the International Student Athletes Club to raise awareness about the poverty in Louisville, Ky. Together, the clubs collected over 500 pounds of canned goods. This act of community service awarded both clubs “The Community Service Award” at the University of Louisville.  

DARIUS BOOKER, VICE PRESIDENT OF COMMUNICATIONS
Program: Master of Strategic Communication
Email: db2215a@american.edu

Darius Booker (he/him/his) is currently pursuing his Master of Arts in Strategic Communication with a concentration in Corporate Communication. In the Spring of 2018, Darius graduated from Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia with a Bachelor of Business Administration with minors in Public Relations and Communication Studies.

As an avid student leader during his time at Marshall University, Darius held numerous leadership positions in his fraternity, Kappa Alpha Psi, Fraternity Inc., as well as, the Public Relations Student Society of America where he served as president, the National Pan-Hellenic Council serving as president and the Student Government Association where he served as the Diversity Liaison.  

Darius is a very detail-oriented student leader who has experience advocating on behalf of the student body and implementing initiatives that will ultimately benefit students and university stakeholders.

Since relocating to Washington, D.C., Darius has begun to get involved with campus initiatives as he is currently serving as the graduate student representative, on the 2018-2019 AU School of Communication Diversity Council.  Darius looks forward to serving the School of Communication Graduate Student Council as Vice President of Communication, building relationships and connecting students.

In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with family and friends. He also thoroughly enjoys photography, exploring the city and trying new food.

Darius is committed to the success of the School of Communication Graduate Student Council’s 2018-2019 goals and objectives.

KIP DOOLEY, PRESIDENT
GRADUATE STUDENT COUNCIL – School of Communications
Email: kip.dooley@student.american.edu
Programs: Master of Journalism and Public Affairs

Kip Dooley is pursuing his M.A. in Journalism and Public Affairs with a focus in Investigations and Multimedia.

Prior to coming to AU, Kip worked as a high school humanities teacher while earning his M.S. in Education. He hails from Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Madison Shomaker, PRESIDENT
GRADUATE STUDENT COUNCIL – College of Arts and Sciences (M.A. Public Anthropology)
Email: ma9098a@american.edu