Staff Bios

The White House Project Staff Bios

Lara Cassell

Lara Cassell is the Communications Manager for The White House Project.  Prior to joining our team in 2007, Lara served a wide variety of non-profit, for-profit, and governmental organizations as a communications and development consultant.  Her clientele included the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Domestic Violence Solutions, the Marijuana Policy Project, and the City of Jefferson Parish, Louisiana.  She also acted as Campaign Manager for Sensible Santa Barbara, where her efforts culminated in a 66 percent win for their 2006 citywide campaign. Lara has worked closely as a pro-bono advisor and volunteer with NARAL Pro-Choice NY, Haven Coalition, Dog Adoption and Welfare Group, Channel Islands Marine Wildlife Institute, and the Wildlife Conservation Society, and is currently illustrating a series of children’s books on environmental conservation.  She holds an M.A. from Rutgers University and dual B.A. degrees from Stony Brook University.

Stacey Chavis

Stacey Chavis is the Southern Regional Director for the White House Project. She directs the Vote, Run, Lead training program for the entire Southeast region. Previously, Stacey was the Deputy Finance Director for the Democratic Party of Georgia. She raised money for the House and Senate Caucuses of the Georgia General Assembly. Stacey also directed the Georgia delegation selection process for the Democratic National Committee Convention in Denver, Colorado in August 2008.

During the 2006 election cycle, she served as the Finance Director for Congressman Hank Johnson (D-GA 4th) during the primary and run-off elections. Stacey also worked for former Congresswoman Denise Majette (D-GA 4th) gaining expertise in congressional politics and constituent services. Stacey gained experience working for several federal government agencies. She has also volunteered on several local campaigns and is active in many local political organizations.

Stacey received a B.A. in Psychology with Political Science minor from Oglethorpe University. She graduated from The White House Project’s 1st Georgia Go Run in 2005 the Women’s Campaign School at Yale in 2007. Stacey is a native of Mauldin, South Carolina.

Tiffany Dufu

Tiffany Dufu is Director of Development.  Before The White House Project, Tiffany served as a Major Gifts Officer for Simmons College in Boston where she was responsible for raising all major individual gifts from Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania.  She was also a fundraiser for the successful campaign to elect Deval Patrick governor, serving on the Young Professionals Committee. She is originally from Seattle, where she served as Associate Director of Development for a start-up girls' school, raising over $2 million in less than two years and securing an additional $2 million challenge grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation toward an endowment.  Her success is rooted in her passion for organizations that advance women and girls.  Tiffany holds a B.A. and M.A. in English and a Certificate in Fundraising Management from the University of Washington.  She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta, Sorority, Inc.

Shannon Garrett

Shannon Garrett is The White House Project Great Lakes Regional Director. A native of Holland, MI, Shannon recently returned home after spending more than a decade building her political, legislative and legal skills in Washington, DC and Minneapolis, MN. She is committed to amplifying the political voice of underrepresented constituencies, and has a particular passion for advancing women's leadership and civic engagement. To pursue these goals, Shannon has worked in a variety of government and nonprofit settings, including the Office of Congressman Sander Levin, the Institute for Women's Policy Research, Alliance for Justice and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. In her work with The White House Project, Shannon will invite and equip Michigan women of all political parties to run for office at all levels of government. Shannon graduated from Alma College in 1994, earned a J.D. from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2004, and is currently a member of the State Bar of Michigan.

Catherine Gray

Catherine Gray was eight years old, giving a rambling account of her day, when her mother lovingly suggested she “sum it all up in three good sentences”. Catherine marks that moment as the beginning of her education as a communications trainer and public speaking coach. Today, working with groups and individuals, Gray blends her experience as an entrepreneur, a filmmaker and a corporate trainer to offer trainings that are crafted to inspire self-confidence and authenticity in speaking. Based in Minnesota as the Associate Director of the Midwest Region, she travels nationwide to train and develop women in the leadership pipeline. Catherine attended Scripps College and earned a Bachelor in Fine Arts from Minneapolis College of Art and Design.

Liz Johnson

As The White House Project’s Midwest Regional Director, Liz Johnson manages the Vote, Run, Lead program in the region. She is a seasoned organizer and is dedicated to building advancing women leaders in community and politics. Since graduating from Grinnell College with a degree in Political Science, she has served as a Program Officer for the Women's Foundation of Minnesota, Legislative Consultant to the Minnesota Welfare Rights Coalition, Director of Low Income People Organizing for Power in Duluth and Community Organizer for both the Duluth and St. Paul Tenants Unions. Johnson is the recipient of the Minnesota Housing Partnership Right to Housing Award and The Minnesota Women's Press 2006 Changemaker Award for her work to advance women leaders in Minnesota.

Travis Leiker

Travis Leiker is Regional Development Director for The White House Project’s Mountain Region.  In this role, he is responsible for all development efforts in Colorado, Wyoming and New Mexico.  Prior to joining The White House Project, Travis served as Project Manager at the Arapahoe County Early Childhood Council (ACECC), working to promote innovative policies and procedures within the early childhood education system.  Travis was also manager of operations and outreach for the Center for Policy Entrepreneurship (CPE), a Denver-based, public policy research and advocacy organization dedicated to identifying and creating effective solutions to critical public policy challenges.  In addition, Travis has extensive experience working in politics, having worked as public outreach coordinator for entrepreneur, philanthropist and (current) United States Congressman Jared Polis. Travis is a Kansas native and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Colorado at Boulder. He enjoys volunteering for political campaigns and other engagement organizations.

Nevada Littlewolf

Nevada Littlewolf is The White House Project's Rural Leadership Field Organizer. Nevada joined WHP after attending a Debate Boot Camp in 2007. She continued her involvement by helping plan and implement the truly historic rural training that adapted the Go Run political leadership training model to the needs of a rural community. Nevada is a member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and was the first Native American and only woman currently elected to the Virginia, MN City Council. Nevada's life experience provides insightful knowledge of rural communities along with a unique cultural perspective that bolsters the work of the Minnesota team. She is an artist and mother of two.

Erin Vilardi

Erin Vilardi is the National Program Director at The White House Project, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that aims to advance women’s leadership in all communities and sectors—up to the U.S. presidency. In her role as program director, Vilardi oversees the award-winning Vote, Run, Lead training program which provides women across the US with the skills and confidence to run for office. Vilardi help launch this political leadership training at WHP in 2004, and has since trained over 6,000 women to lead a political life.  

Last year, in partnership with O, The Oprah Magazine, Vilardi led WHPs first cross-sector training program, Women Rule! – which worked to develop the leadership of 80 contest winners from across the country with innovative ideas for change.

In 2007, she was the managing director for WHP on the groundbreaking International Women Leaders Global Security Summit, convening 75 of the highest-ranking women leaders from around the globe on the issues of international security. A frequent speaker on college campuses and at conferences, she has also appeared on CNN, the BBC, and was featured on "Spotlight 25," a Lifetime Television special on young women and the quarter-life crisis.

Vilardi was a part of Global Youth Connect's first delegation to Bosnia to study human rights and post-conflict resolution in 2005. She is a member of the Younger Women's Task Force and has been recognized as an emerging progressive leader.

A resident of New York City, Vilardi graduated from New York University with a BA in Politics and Gender Studies.

Faith Winter

Faith Winter is the Training and Outreach Director for the White House Project. Winter provides training, inspiration and empowerment to promote women's political leadership in Colorado and the Southwest region. Winter has helped train women who are now serving on city councils, school boards and state legislatures. Winter has been organizing and working on campaigns for the past six years. Doing environmental work, she lead a team of over 100 young people that turned out 93,000 young voters in 2004. Winter also led over a dozen clean energy campaigns that generated 2 million dollars to purchase wind and solar power. In 2004 Winter was named one of 30 people under 30 showing political leadership by the Youth Vote Coalition. Winter loves organizing because she believes the best way to create change is by building power through people. She also has fun doing it, because a job isn't worth doing unless you laugh once in a while.