Laura Lee Sturm, MSW

Experience

• 

  Elon University Center for Leadership

  Jan 2012 - Mar 2013

  Special Events Director

  • Organized Opening and Closing Ceremony schedules including travel arrangements for alumni speaker• Created leadership development opportunities and offered signature “Identify A Leader” during LEADSTRONG week• Administrated room reservation system for Center events

• 

  United States Senate

  May 2012 - Jul 2012

  Intern for Senator Kay R. Hagan

  • Attended United States House and Senate Hearings covering issues from medical insurance to disability rights and reported content back to Legislative Correspondents• Wrote a comprehensive tour booklet for future interns as well as a clear chart of office hierarchy• Crafted approximately 15 constituent letters on behalf of the Senator• Gave tours of Capitol building to visiting constituents

• 

  Intersect: Diversity and Leadership Conference

  Aug 2012 - Mar 2013

  Coordinator

  • Oversaw and executed two-day conference for approximately 160 students, faculty, and staff on Elon University’s campus in rural North Carolina• Hired and led a group of 8 student committee members with weekly group meetings and structured weekly check-ins to gauge and set progress to goal• Raised over $15,000 through University and community sponsorships to fund two keynote speakers including LGBTQ activist Zach Wahls and anti-racism activist Tim Wise

• 

  Jennifer Wexton for State Senate

  Nov 2013 - Jan 2014

  Field Organizer

  • Managed one self-sustaining phone bank with an average attendance of 12 volunteers and 800 DVC calls per week • Organized the local Women to Women group including weekly phone banks and a kick-off event of 15 volunteers who made approximately 1,000 calls per week to constituents• Actively recruited volunteers by making approximately 150 recruitment calls per day • Canvassed neighborhoods by personally knocking approximately 100 doors per day

• 

  Forward NC

  Sept 2014 - Nov 2014

  Regional Field Director/ Regional GOTV Director

  • Promoted after one month to leadership role where I managed nine field organizers and one field office by running two daily meetings discussing organizer goals and priorities as well as weekly 1:1 meetings• Instituted region-wide organizational structure to set up organizers for success during GOTV through ensuring each organizer fully vetted each Staging Location and had sufficiently trained each member of Staging Location leadership• Coordinated regional collaboration with League of Conservation Voters (LCV) through weekly meetings with Regional LCV leadership Show less

• 

  DESC (Downtown Emergency Service Center)

  Dec 2014 - Aug 2016

  • Built trusting and meaningful relationships with caseload of twenty formerly homeless clients living with severe alcohol dependency and mental health issues through weekly 1 on 1 meetings• Made referrals and scheduled appointments for client meetings with outside providers, including accompanying clients to the hospital to ensure client accountability and comfort• Connected clients with county, state, and federal services and resources to support a healthy and safe lifestyle including mental health counseling, psychiatry, and COPES referrals• Offered daily support and harm reduction strategies through taking clients to the grocery store and encouraging them to utilize local resources such as Needle Exchange programs and the 1811 alcohol management program Show less

  • Clinical Support Specialist

    Aug 2015 - Aug 2016

  • Residential Counselor

    Dec 2014 - Aug 2015
• 

  Florida Democratic Party

  Aug 2016 - Nov 2016

  Special Projects Director/ Get Out The Vote (GOTV) Pod Lead

  • Managed team of five Regional GOTV Directors and ran daily meetings to establish individual and group priorities as well as communicate statewide GOTV and Field Organizing logistics• Secured and oversaw 52 Staging Locations across Pod and coordinated distribution of all Early Vote and GOTV materials, including precinct specific literature and the total production supervision of over 5000 GOTV canvass packets• Served as event leadership for five Principal events (including Secretary Hillary Clinton, President Bill Clinton, Vice President Joe Biden, and Senator Tim Kaine) in a one month period with event attendance ranging from 400 to 4000 attendees • Effectively placed and supervised 30 volunteers and 15 staff at five Principal events to efficiently collect data, maintain crowd lines, and manage protest control• Supported Deputy Organizing Director in supervising seven Regional Organizing Directors and provided personalized coaching on leadership style and effective management techniques Show less

• 

  SEIU Healthcare 1199NW

  Jan 2017 - Jul 2018

  Organizer

  • Identified and developed member leaders and activists in turf of 1100 members at Swedish Medical Center’s First Hill campus• Created strategic escalation plans with members to organize their coworkers around unfair working conditions• Demonstrated a strong understanding of Collective Bargaining Agreement language through writing Grievances and preparing cases to defend grievants

• 

  U District Let's Go

  Nov 2018 - Jun 2019

  Outreach Manager

  • Independently managed the transition of a one-year pilot program to part-time work over the course of six months• Planned four events to promote resources and support low-income access to transportation • Engaged with minority-owned businesses to identify transportation needs and remove barriers to access• Coordinated with Public Health and local business to organize six ORCA LIFT enrollment events

• 

  City of Seattle

  May 2019 - now

  • Determine & allocate funds within a $9 million dollar budget to develop and implement the transportation access portfolio, which includes ten unique programs in the City of Seattle impacting more than 30,000 residents• Expanded and successfully implemented the Seattle Housing Authority (SHA) Transit Pass, which provides free transit to over 11,000 SHA residents• Manage two full-time direct reports and two interns with weekly 1:1s, quarterly professional development check-ins, and annual job performance reviews• Coordinate with the Mayor’s Office staff as well as Seattle City Council to create and deliver proposals that center equitable, transit-focused programming • Built trusting relationships with community partners through culturally centered programming and ongoing contract management and support Show less • Maintain communication and programming for free ORCA cards for 15,000 income-eligible Middle School students, High School Students, Seattle Promise scholars, and eligible Seattle Housing Authority tenants• Coordinate distribution and management of over 1,600 free, unlimited use ORCA cards to Seattle Housing Authority residents • Conduct annual program evaluations to identify opportunities for growth and to assess racial equity of programs• Create budget requests and programming for year after year program sustainability Show less

  • Transportation Access Program Manager

    Jul 2020 - now

  • ORCA Opportunity Program Coordinator

    May 2019 - Jul 2020
• 

  Statewide Poverty Action Network

  Oct 2019 - Jun 2020

  Policy and Community Engagement Fellow

  • Researched and created reports on a racial equity analysis of home foreclosures in WA, the impact of a state earned income tax credit on childhood development, and income share agreements• Created and maintained bill tracker for legislative campaigns related to debt buying, consumer protections, and tax reform• Supported annual Lobby Day through coordination of lawmaker meetings and training District Leaders• Created and provided training about Washington’s Legislative process for three groups of twenty individuals Show less