| CMF Staff |
brad fitchBradford Fitch is President and CEO. Fitch has spent 25 years in Washington as a journalist, congressional aide, consultant, college instructor, Internet entrepreneur, and writer/researcher. Fitch began his career as a radio and television reporter in the 1980’s. He began working on Capitol Hill in 1988 where he served for 13 years. He worked in a variety of positions for four Members of Congress, including: press secretary, campaign manager, legislative director, and chief of staff. Fitch left working in Congress in 2001 to work for the Congressional Management Foundation. As Deputy Director of CMF, he served as a management consultant for Members of Congress, offering confidential guidance, conducting staff training programs, and writing publications on enhancing the performance of individual congressional offices and the institution. He served as editor of Setting Course: A Congressional Management Guide for the 108th Congress and 109th Congress editions.In 2005 Fitch managed CMF’s Communicating with Congress project, and co-authored the report, How Capitol Hill is Coping with the Surge in Citizen Advocacy. He left CMF in 2006 to form a new company, Knowlegis, in affiliation with Capitol Advantage. Knowlegis is now a part of CQ-Roll Call Group, where Fitch served as a Vice President until 2010 when he returned to CMF. Fitch also is the author of Media Relations Handbook for Agencies, Associations, Nonprofits and Congress (TheCapitol.Net, 2004); “Best Practices in Online Advocacy for Associations, Nonprofits, and Corporations,” a chapter in Routledge Handbook of Political Management (Routledge, 2008); and articles on communications and advocacy. He has taught journalism and public communications at American University in Washington, D.C, where he served an adjunct Associate Professor of Communications. He received his B.A. degree in Political Science from Johns Hopkins University and his M.A. degree in Journalism and Public Affairs from American University.
kathy goldschmidtKathy Goldschmidt is CMF’s Deputy Director. She is responsible for the day to day internal management of the organization as well as arranging confidential management assessments for congressional clients and management workshops for congressional staff. Kathy is also involved in the organization’s project work. Most recently, she co-authored chapters in Keeping It Local: A Guide for Managing Congressional District & State Offices and co-authored Online Town Hall Meetings: Exploring Democracy in the 21st Century, a research report summarizing the findings and recommendations from an academic study of 21 online town hall meetings between Members of Congress and their constituents. Kathy has been heavily involved with CMF's Communicating with Congress project for more than five years. She was a presenter and facilitator at the 2007 Communicating with Congress Conference, she has overseen the research throughout the project, and she was co-researcher and co-author of the 2005 report Communicating with Congress: How Capitol Hill is Coping with the Surge in Citizen Advocacy and the 2008 report Communicating with Congress: How the Internet Has Changed Citizen Engagement. Kathy joined CMF in 1997 and was the Director of Technology Research from 2000-2005. She directed CMF’s technology research and guidance to House and Senate offices for using technology to be more effective and more efficient. She was co-author of Congress Online 2003: Turning the Corner on the Information Age, and she was the principal author of Congress Online: Assessing and Improving Capitol Hill Web Sites and E-mail Overload in Congress: Managing a Communications Crisis. Kathy has also been integral to a number of contracts with the House of Representatives to develop strategies for House use of information and communications technologies, including an intensive, two-year project to develop a ten-year vision and strategy for technology in the House of Representatives. She has spoken extensively, and continues to speak regularly, on the topics of congressional communications and legislative e-government. Prior to her work at CMF, Kathy worked in a congressional office and as an Internet Analyst and Communications Specialist for a small consulting firm. She holds a BA from Carleton College.
nicole folk cooperNicole Folk Cooper is the Director of Marketing and Publications for CMF. She conducts research, analysis, writing, and outreach on a broad range of CMF activities, including managing and writing reports and publications; consulting with congressional offices; conducting training programs for House interns, staff assistants, and legislative staff; and managing and conducting project work under contract with the U.S. House of Representatives. Nicole is the project manager and editor of the 2010 revision of Keeping It Local: A Guide for Managing Congressional District & State Offices, and the 111th Congress edition of Setting Course, CMF's premier publication on setting up and managing congressional offices. She is co-author and editor of The Insider's Guide to Research on Capitol Hill, and the editor and project manager of the most recent edition of the Congressional Intern Handbook: A Guide for Interns and Newcomers to Capitol Hill. Nicole is also a contributor to the 2006 Gold Mouse Report: Recognizing the Best Web Sites on Capitol Hill; co-author of Congress Online 2003: Turning the Corner on the Information Age; contributing author to E-mail Overload in Congress: Managing a Communications Crisis and Congress Online: Assessing and Improving Capitol Hill Web Sites. Nicole came to CMF in 2001 from InterAmerica Technologies, one of the primary vendors of correspondence management systems (CMS) to House and Senate offices. Prior to her work at InterAmerica, Nicole was Office and Systems Manager for a Member of Congress. She graduated Cum Laude with degrees in History-Political Science and Business Administration.
tim hysomTim Hysom serves as CMF's Director for Communications and Technology Services. He conducts and oversees CMF's grant and contract work in these areas in addition to serving as a trainer and consultant. Tim manages the Communicating with Congress research project and is the author of Communicating with Congress: Recommendations for Improving the Democratic Dialogue. He was project manager and a contributor to the 2007 Gold Mouse Report: Lessons from the Best Web Sites on Capitol Hill and the 2006 Gold Mouse Report: Recognizing the Best Web Sites on Capitol Hill. Tim also conducts training programs for congressional staff on constituent mail and the strategic use of technology. Most recently Tim was a Legislative Assistant to a Member of Congress. During his time on Capitol Hill he developed deep expertise in web design, strategic management of constituent communications, and all other aspects of congressional office technology. Prior to coming to Washington, Tim worked for Autodesk, Inc. in various marketing and communications roles, as well as serving in the district office of a Member of Congress. Tim has a BA with honors from the Dominican University of California and is currently completing a Master of Public Administration program at American University in Washington, D.C.
mary lundy semelaMary Lundy Semela is CMF's Director of Development. She is a fundraising and communications professional, most recently leading the professional fundraising team at the Institute for America’s Future. Mary began her career as the founder of a start-up organization for the unemployed in New Orleans. After successfully institutionalizing the program, she moved on to become director of communications for a new Covenant House. During this time, Mary was active in the local anti-apartheid and “undoing racism” movements. Mary has previously developed programs, campaigns and events for organizations such as the White House Project, the College of Saint Benedict in Central Minnesota, Shared Interest (a guarantee fund benefiting grassroots development in South Africa), Loyola College, and Commonweal Magazine.
collin burdenCollin Burden is the Office Manager and Research Assistant for CMF and contributes his analytical and communications skills to a number of CMF projects and publications. He is the primary author of the 2007 Gold Mouse Report: Lessons from the Best Web Sites on Capitol Hill and the 2006 Gold Mouse Report: Recognizing the Best Web Sites on Capitol Hill. He also provides support for CMF’s various research projects and programs, from trainings for senior-level congressional staff to the Communicating with Congress research project to orientation programs for Hill interns and staff assistants. Collin is a former CMF intern and graduated Cum Laude from the University of California, San Diego.
beverly bellBeverly Bell previously served as CMF's Executive Director and is currently a consultant for CMF. She served as editor of the 110th Congress edition of CMF's flagship publication, Setting Course: A Congressional Management Guide and has more than 20 years of experience working for and with Members of Congress and their staff.
She spent 10 years in the private sector in the Government and Regulatory Affairs Office at PricewaterhouseCoopers and the legacy firm of Coopers & Lybrand. In that role, she educated Members of Congress and their staff on public policy issues affecting the capital markets including financial services, tort reform, and trade initiatives. Beverly served on the CMF Board of Governors from 1997 to 2006 and is an officer of the House Chiefs of Staff Alumni Association. She is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, Georgia.
ira chaleffIra Chaleff has worked as a management consultant and executive coach for over 15 years. He is President of Executive Coaching and Consulting Associates and a founding partner of the Institute for Business Technology, which conducts its popular Personal Efficiency Program for Fortune 500 companies and government agencies. Ira is a former Executive Director of the Congressional Management Foundation and the author of the book, The Courageous Follower: Standing Up To and For Our Leaders. He has taught political and organizational leadership at American University and is a core curriculum instructor in Georgetown University's Leadership Development Program. Ira also has broad international experience in leadership development through such agencies as The Asia Foundation, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and The National Democratic Institute.
meredith persily lamelMeredith Persily Lamel previously served as CMF's Director of Training and Consulting and is currently a management consultant and trainer for CMF. She is President of MPL Partners, LLC, an organizational consulting and leadership coaching firm. Prior to joining CMF, Meredith was Director of Executive Education at the Corporate Leadership Council (CLC), the human resources practice of The Corporate Executive Board (CEB). At CLC, she taught best practices research to corporations and organizations from around the globe on the topics of leadership development, high potential talent, succession management, performance management, executive coaching and employee engagement. She consulted in the areas of management capacity building and strategic planning for The Futures Group, an international healthcare consulting firm in Washington, DC. From 1994-1999, Meredith held a number of positions at Pyramid Research, the telecommunications division of the Economist Intelligence Unit. She was the South America analyst for three years, based in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and worked in Cambridge, Massachusetts as Latin America Research Director then Deputy Director of Research. Meredith graduated with an MBA from The University of Chicago and has a BA with honors from Brown University.
laura d. scottLaura Scott worked for CMF from 1991 to 1996 and since 1996 has been consulting for CMF as a Management Consultant and trainer. Laura has led well over a hundred confidential assessments for House and Senate offices on matters such as Strategic Planning, Communication, Team Building, District Office Operations, and Mail Systems. Prior to joining CMF, Laura worked in a Senate office for eight years. Laura currently holds the position of Assistant Director/Senior Organizational Development Specialist at the Center for Leadership & Organizational Change at the University of Maryland, College Park. In this role, she works with Deans, Department Chairs and other campus leaders to help them plan and implement organizational change. She received her Masters in Organizational Development from The American University/NTL.
rick shapiroRick Shapiro currently serves as a management consultant to CMF and other clients. He previously spent nineteen years at CMF and served as Executive Director from 1990 to 2006. During that time he facilitated strategic planning retreats, conducted confidential office assessments and performed other management consulting services for congressional offices. Rick is the author of Frontline Management, a guidebook for running district and state offices. He is also the author of several chapters in CMF’s management guidebook, Setting Course: A Congressional Management Guide, and co-author of Working in Congress: The Staff Perspective. He has appeared on the CBS Evening News, CNN, C-Span, CNBC, and National Public Radio to discuss congressional management issues and is frequently cited in newspaper articles. Before coming to CMF, Rick held senior staff positions in both the Senate and House, and worked as a management consultant for Coopers & Lybrand and the State of Arizona. He received his Masters in Public Administration from Princeton University. |