Stacy Kerr was a highly successful communications specialist for many years, but it wasn’t until she graduated from the executive master’s program in Global Strategic Communications that she started her own consulting firm.
To Kerr—founder of Kerr Strategies, a strategic communications consultancy in Washington, D.C.—this was no coincidence. She credits Georgetown’s program, and its unique focus on personal growth and leadership, with inspiring her to take that step.
“The emphasis on personal awareness is a differentiator for Georgetown, and it’s very consistent with the Jesuit tradition,” Kerr said. “I gained not only self-awareness and self-confidence, but also a deeper understanding of my strengths as a leader, both inside and outside of my career.”
Judging by her last two jobs, Kerr had plenty of strengths before entering the program. For nine years she served as special assistant to perhaps the most powerful Democrat in Congress: current House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. Then, in 2011, the woman Politico once dubbed “Pelosi’s alter ego” left Capitol Hill, not because she was tired of politics but because she wanted to apply all she had learned outside of politics. She found that challenge as the assistant vice president for strategic communications at Georgetown, a position she held for six years.
At Georgetown, Kerr’s job involved much more than representing the University and covering campus events. It meant truly understanding, in the most authentic way, what the Georgetown “brand”—indeed, its ideal—represents. That required vigilance, consistency, and an ongoing spirit of teamwork and collaboration.
“Communication is constant,” Kerr said. “Communication is not something you do only in a crisis.”
The Global Strategic Communications program emphasized that developing true leadership requires personal growth—a message Kerr took to heart.
“I believe that good leaders are made, not born,” Kerr said. “The program emphasized reflection and looking internally at my strengths, and that will definitely be my approach in the future.”