As director of policy and partnerships, civic infrastructure adoption, Shannon Powell is responsible for creating, leading and executing strategies to leverage local public sector contributions in support of partnership goals. Shannon grew up in Racine, Wisconsin, and currently lives in West Racine with his wife, Chelsea, and two sons, Parker and Logan. He spent more than a decade of his career in various levels of government, working directly for elected officials including the Wisconsin State Senate, the City of Milwaukee, Milwaukee County and the Racine Unified School District. Most recently, he served as the chief of staff and communications director to the mayor of the City of Racine. As chief of staff, he led a team that heavily focused on creating and supporting programs — largely funded through CDBG, CARES and ARP dollars — to reduce economic and educational disparities and support the economic mobility of the city’s residents. In his role at StriveTogether, Shannon leverages the expertise of national partners through the Equitable Recovery Pledge and contributes to civic infrastructure adoption across all levels of government (local, state and federal). In his spare time, Shannon is a home chef who recently started a catering business. He loves to travel with his family and is a huge Marvel and Star Wars fan.