Engage and Connect

Yohannes Abraham serves as Deputy Assistant to the President for the Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs and Senior Advisor to the National Economic Council. Prior to joining the White House, Abraham served as the Deputy National Political Director on the Obama-Biden 2012 campaign, where he managed political strategy and operations in swing states. After the election, Abraham was named Director of Public Engagement for the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Committee. Before joining the Obama-Biden 2012 campaign, Abraham was the National Political Director at Organizing for America, and also served in the White House Office of Legislative Affairs during the passage of the Affordable Care Act, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and other key pieces of the President’s agenda. He also served as then-Senator Obama’s Virginia Field Director during the 2008 general election. Abraham is a native of Springfield, VA.

Julie Chavez Rodriguez is Special Assistant to the President, Principal Deputy Director of Public Engagement, and Senior Policy Advisor. In this role, Julie manages a team of associate directors who work with leaders in the LGBT, AAPI, Latino, Veterans, Youth, Education, Labor, and Progressive communities. Over the past four years, Julie has worked in the Office of Public Engagement, supporting efforts to reform the nation’s immigration system, improve services for veterans, and increase access to affordable, quality health care, among other issues. Julie has also worked in coordination with the White House’s National Security Council on efforts to normalize the United States’ relationship with Cuba, in addition to responding to the migration of Central American children and their families. Prior to joining the White House, Julie served as the Director of Youth Employment at the Department of the Interior and the Deputy Press Secretary to former Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar. Before joining the Administration, Julie served as the Director of Programs at the Cesar E. Chavez Foundation.

Ashley Allison is the Deputy Director in the Office of Public Engagement. In this role Ashley manages a team of associate directors who work with leaders in the African American, Entertainment Industry, Faith, Disability, Jewish, International, Women of Color communities. She also works on the policy areas of criminal justice, My Brother’s Keeper, and economic ladders of opportunities. Prior to joining the White House, Ashley served as the National Director of Partner Engagement and Outreach at Enroll America. Prior to joining Enroll America, she was a Constituency Coordinator for the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Committee, focusing on women and faith outreach. In 2011, she joined President Barack Obama’s reelection campaign in Ohio as a Regional Field Director and then became the state’s African American Vote Director.

Before entering campaigns, Ashley worked as a freelance journalist covering local Brooklyn, NY news and has been an advocate for fair housing, voting rights, and economic justice. She also was a New York City Teaching Fellow, working as a special education teacher in the New York City Public School System. She has a law degree and a master's degree in education.

Katherine Branch is the Director of Special Projects and Special Assistant to the Senior Advisor to the President Valerie Jarrett. In this role, she oversees and executes a variety of projects designed to support the Senior Advisor in her roles as head of the Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs and as chair of the White House Council on Women and Girls. Branch has been a key member of the Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs team since the very beginning of the President’s first term, and has played a vital role in its work to promote the President’s agenda.

Ryan Daniels serves as the Associate Director for Communications for the Office of Public Engagement and the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. Prior to joining the White House, Ryan was a Spokesperson for Tax Policy, Economic Policy, and the Budget at the U.S. Department of the Treasury and a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Transportation. Before joining the Administration, Ryan was the Deputy National Press Secretary and African American Media Advisor at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. During the 2012 election cycle, he worked for the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte as the Deputy Press Secretary and then joined the Obama campaign and served as a Regional Press Secretary in Virginia. Prior to working on the convention, Ryan was a Senior Account Executive at Edelman Public Relations. Ryan got his start in political communication in 2007 with an internship in the press office of then House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn and was later hired as the Press Assistant.

Ryan is originally from Gaithersburg, Maryland and graduated from North Carolina State University with a degree in Mass Communication.

Monique Dorsainvil serves as the Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor for the Office of Public Engagement and the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. Prior to this role, Dorsainvil served as the Director of Planning and Events for the Office of Public Engagement and the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. Dorsainvil started at the White House as an intern in the Office of the First Lady in 2009 and subsequently advanced domestic and international visits for the President and First Lady. Dorsainvil joined the Office of Public Engagement in 2010 where she focused her efforts on the Council on Women and Girls and outreach to the LGBT community. Before joining the White House, Dorsainvil worked as an aide to House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams in the Georgia General Assembly. Dorsainvil is a native of Los Angeles, CA. She graduated from Emory University with a B.A. in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Global Health.

Diana Doukas is the Director of the White House Business Council (WHBC) and Policy Advisor. The WHBC serves as the key convening mechanism for the Obama Administration's engagement with top business leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators, small business owners, and private-sector subject matter experts. Previously, Diana served as the White House Liaison at the U.S. Small Business Administration. Before joining the administration, Diana was Director of Development for Business Forward. Diana also served as Senior Deputy Finance Director for the NY Tri-State area for the Obama Biden 2012 campaign and was a member of the finance team for Paul Hodes (NH), then NY Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Diana is a Starting Bloc Fellow and holds a degree in Political Science from Villanova University.

Raffi Freedman-Gurspan serves as a Senior Associate Director for Public Engagement and the White House’s primary liaison to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. She is also an Outreach and Recruitment Director in the Presidential Personnel Office. She is the first appointee in the Obama White House who is openly transgender.

Raffi previously worked at the National Center for Transgender Equality as Policy Advisor for the Racial and Economic Justice Initiative. Prior to moving to Washington, DC, Raffi was a Legislative Director in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, LGBT Liaison for the City of Somerville, Massachusetts and worked with the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition. She also assisted in course and research work at Boston University’s Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies Program.

A graduate of St. Olaf College in Minnesota, Raffi was adopted from Honduras and grew up in Brookline, Massachusetts.

Zaid Hassan is currently serving as the Assistant Director of the White House Business Council in the Office of Public Engagement. Prior to joining the White House as a Staff Assistant in 2013, Zaid worked on the Obama-Biden 2012 re-election campaign. He initially served with the operations and travel teams at the campaign headquarters in Chicago, and organized in the field thereafter as Iowa’s Deputy Get Out the Vote Director. Before his yearlong commitment with the Obama for America campaign, Zaid served at the Texas state legislature and held leadership positions with several non-profit organizations in Austin. A proud Longhorn, he received his B.A. in Government from The University of Texas at Austin. Zaid was raised in Lahore, Pakistan and Austin, Texas.

Stefani Jones is the Special Assistant and Policy Advisor to the Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement. She also directs the White House Champions of Change program. Prior to her current role, Stefani served in the Office of Communications as Media Monitor and as an intern for the White House Press Office. Stefani graduated from Duke University, where she studied political science and policy journalism. In college, Stefani served as student body president and worked on sexual assault prevention and campus equity issues. She is a native of Scottsdale, Arizona.

Kyle Lierman serves as a Senior Associate Director of Public Engagement and Senior Policy Advisor in the White House Office of Public Engagement. Kyle is the liaison to Young Americans and coordinates outreach on education issues. Kyle also leads the “It’s On Us” sexual assault prevention campaign for the White House. Prior to this role, Kyle served as a Staff Assistant in the Office of Public Engagement, coordinating the Champions of Change Program and outreach to the sports community. Before joining the White House, Kyle was the GOTV director in Louisiana in 2010 for Organizing for America, ran for State Delegate in his hometown of Bethesda, MD, served as a Special Assistant on the Obama-Biden transition team, and was a field organizer for Obama for America in 2008. Kyle is a graduate of George Washington University where he majored in business.

Shelly Marc serves as a Staff Assistant and Policy Advisor for the Office of Public Engagement. Prior to joining the White House, Shelly served as a Correspondence Specialist for the Office of Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (New York). Originally from the great state of Florida, Shelly is a proud graduate of the University of South Florida where she received her degree in Political Science and Criminology.

Archana Sahgal serves as a Senior Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Engagement, where she manages outreach to labor and progressive groups. Prior to joining the White House, she served as Director of the Office of Advisory Committees and Industry Outreach at the U.S. Department of Commerce, working with the private sector to promote job creation and economic growth. Before joining the Administration, Archana worked extensively in the philanthropic and nonprofit sectors. She was a program officer at the Open Society Foundations, managing the immigration and racial justice portfolios for U.S. Programs. In addition, she has directed the Color of Democracy Fund, and co-founded and directed the Civic Engagement Fund for Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian Communities at Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy. Archana has also worked with the Rosenberg Foundation, the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, EMILY's List, M&R Strategic Services, the National Voting Rights Institute, The San Francisco Foundation, and other organizations. She received her B.A from Claremont McKenna College and her J.D. from the University of California at Davis School of Law. Archana is a member of the California State Bar.

Matt Stiner serves as Associate Director of Public Engagement, where he manages outreach to veterans, service members, and their families. He comes to the White House from the Department of Veterans Affairs, where he served as a Special Assistant to the Secretary and was responsible for outreach to veteran and military organizations. His career in public service began in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he worked as Director of Veterans Affairs in the Mayor’s Office and created numerous programs for veterans, service members, and their families. He then coordinated the Tulsa Veterans Treatment Court, the third such program in the nation to treat veterans involved in the criminal justice system who suffer from mental health and substance abuse issues. Later, Matt served as the first Director of Justice for Vets, a non-profit based in Alexandria, Virginia. Matt has served in the United States Marine Corps and received the Combat Action Ribbon for service in Iraq. After his service, he utilized VA education benefits, graduating Magna Cum Laude from Oklahoma State University. In 2007, he received a prestigious Harry S. Truman Scholarship, which he used towards a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Oklahoma.

Justin Vail is the Deputy Director of Private Sector Engagement. He joins the White House from the U.S. Department of Commerce, where he served as the Deputy White House Liaison. Prior to joining the Administration, Justin completed clerkships in the Northern District of Illinois and the Eastern District of Missouri. He previously served as a Policy Aide to U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill and helped lead the Senator's successful reelection campaign in 2012. He also worked on then-Senator Obama's 2008 presidential campaign. Justin is a native of St. Louis, Missouri and a graduate of Truman State University and Washington University School of Law.

Stephanie Young is a Senior Public Engagement Advisor in the Office of Public Engagement where she serves as the White House’s primary liaison to the African American community. She most recently served as the White House Associate Communications Director where she helped manage announcements of new policy and Presidential priorities. Prior to joining the White House, Stephanie previously served as the National Press Secretary for the Office of the Democratic Whip, Steny Hoyer, where she was the chief spokesperson on issues ranging from the House legislative schedule and voting rights to trade and immigration. In January of 2013 Stephanie served as the Director of Constituency Press for the Presidential Inaugural Committee and, prior to that, as the Director of Regional Press for the state of Florida for President Obama's re-election campaign. Under the Chairmanship of Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, Stephanie served as the Communications Director for the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) during the 112th Congress. In that position, she helped promote the CBC's agenda and raised their profile in national policy debates as a strong voice on issues important to American families. She has previously worked at Rock the Vote, the PBS Newshour, and holds a B.A. from Hampton University in Broadcast Journalism.