Shannon Emmett is a Senior Policy Analyst at IWPR. In this role, she strategizes state level public policy to advance women and their families. She brings several years of experience at the Massachusetts State House where she first served as a Legislative Aide in the State Senate and most recently as a Research Director driving environmental policy. She traveled across the Commonwealth to engage with stakeholder coalitions and constituents on a breadth of environmental issues, and served as an advisor to multiple committee Chairs through policy negotiations. In response to a statewide increase in food insecurity, Shannon conducted an assessment of Massachusetts’ Food Security Infrastructure Grant program to promote equitable access to nutritious and culturally competent food.

As a former Commissioner on the Essex County Commission on the Status of Women, Shannon partnered with local nonprofits to raise awareness and provide resources to her hometown community during the COVID-19 pandemic in response to rising incidences of domestic violence.

Shannon earned a Master of Public Policy degree at Northeastern University, where her research focused on education reform, labor standards in the gig economy, as well as maternal mortality and intimate partner violence. She holds a dual Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Political Science and History from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where she was a fellow and a member of the UMass Women into Leadership Board of Directors, supporting a pipeline for young women from public education into public service.