Stephenie Foster
Independent Consultant
Stephenie has over 25 years of experience in domestic and international policy advocacy, government affairs, program development and training, and law. Since 1997, Stephenie has participated in numerous international programs and projects sponsored by the United States State Department, the Vital Voices Global Partnership, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI) and others. This work has focused on programs to increase core civic engagement skills, strategic planning, corporate governance and project planning and management.
Based on her experience in the design and evaluation of training programs, Stephenie has authored two manuals for Vital Voices, Advocacy and Running for Office: A Training Manual for Women and Ending Violence Against Women and Human Trafficking: A Guide to New Strategies (with Cindy Dyer), both published in March 2010. Her international work has taken her to more than 20 countries, covering every region of the world, and she has also trained numerous groups who have traveled to the US.
Prior to starting her consulting practice, Stephenie was Senior Vice President for Government Affairs at Legacy (formerly the American Legacy Foundation), where she focused on advancing the public health mission of Legacy with government officials, and was widely credited with building a strong and effective government affairs presence for Legacy.
Before joining Legacy, Stephenie served as Chief of Staff to two United States Senators (Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and Christopher Dodd (D-CT)) and was appointed by President Clinton as General Counsel of the U. S. General Services Administration. Stephenie also served as the Vice President for Public Policy for Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA).
Stephenie has served on community and organizational boards; she is currently a member of the board of directors of Women Thrive Worldwide and the Sewall-Belmont House & Museum. She also has experience in facilitating the interests of a variety of stakeholders as they endeavor to move toward a common goal.
Stephenie is an attorney by training and was a litigation partner at Steefel, Levitt & Weiss in San Francisco, California. She received a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.R.P. from Cornell University and a B.A. from the University of California. She is also a Professorial Lecturer at the Women & Politics Institute at American University in Washington, DC where she teaches courses on women and public policy.
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