Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Affiliations
Volunteer Experience
Publications
Internship Experience
Timeline
Generic

Breanna Pettigo Hester, LMSW

Birmingham

Overview

8
8
years of professional experience

Work History

Chief of Staff

Gateway
11.2021 - Current
  • Serve as the right hand to the CEO and Board of Directors, developing and executing a strategic vision to keep a 132-year-old nonprofit evolving to meet needs of today's families.
  • Monitor external factors, as well as internal operations, to curate environmental scans that update the CEO and Board of Directors on all things impacting our field. This includes policy changes at the federal, state and local levels.
  • Cultivate, maintain and leverage relationships with leaders of other nonprofits, elected officials and key community partners moving the needle together for Alabama's children and families.
  • Advocate for client needs. Advocated for an increase to the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) educating Alabama's Congressional delegation on the needs that resulted in an increase of CAPTA state grants by $5 million to $90 million - the largest increase for CAPTA funding since 2005.
  • Secure financial support. Garnered more than $6 million in United Way and private funding through grant- writing skills, management and fundraising experience.
  • Innovate revenue streams. Assisted in securing $4 million in federal funding for new service lines through SAMHSA and the Children's Bureau distributed over the next five years (2023-2028.)
  • Assess opportunities to strengthen existing grants. Helped increase Gateway's annual Children's Trust Fund grant award from $28,000 to $100,000 from 2019 to 2023.
  • Assist CEO/BOD in strategic planning, yearly goal setting, and executing tasks that achieve them. The implementation process resulted in an enterprise level training for staff in Trauma Systems Therapy infusing the model across agency programs.
  • Uphold Gateway's 132-year legacy as a game-changer for Alabama children and families. Posture the agency as the state's leader in family solutions through a strong understanding of policy, relationship building, marketing and leveraging technology.

Strategic Engagement Manager

Gateway
07.2018 - 11.2021
  • Led outreach initiatives to amplify Gateway's visibility in our local community as well as statewide.
  • Participated in meetings for coalitions in the family services field as a
    representative of the agency.
  • Analyzed and supported agency needs in areas of communication, staffing and community outreach.
  • Led on-boarding orientation for new hires and provided support for new staff members in their roles.
  • Created opportunities for staff to connect and celebrate their work alongside the work of our foster parents.
  • Facilitated training for new foster parents using the TIPS model.
  • Assisted with grant writing and management.
  • Supported the CEO, Chief of Staff and other executive leadership staff in projects as assigned.

Communications And Event Specialist

Gateway
04.2018 - 06.2018
  • Organized training and outreach events for the agency.
  • Devised and implemented social media campaigns and schedules.
  • Constructed communications content including social media posts, newsletters and marketing materials.
  • Assisted with foster parent and staff recruitment.
  • Supported the Chief of Staff with various outreach programs and projects as assigned.

Manager, Government Affairs/ PAC

USA Rice Federation
09.2016 - 03.2018
    • Coordinated and oversaw fundraising activity for the Political Action Committee (PAC) and its Board of Directors. Raised the second highest amount for the PAC since its inception.
    • Developed and maintained relationships with members of Congress as well as key sponsors of the Federation.
    • Coordinated meetings for the Government Affairs Director with members of Congress and congressional staff.
    • Organized USA Rice's annual Government Affairs Conference facilitating the annual PAC fundraiser and over 100 Hill meetings with executive branch officials, federal agencies, and members of Congress.
    • Ensured compliance for the PAC and Government Affairs team by filing quarterly FEC/ lobbying reports.
    • Oversaw activity for the PAC Board of Directors tracking expenses, legislative priorities and curating communications on progress toward goals for each cycle.

Executive Assistant

Congressman Henry Cuellar
01.2016 - 09.2016
  • Air traffic controller for Rep. Cuellar's daily activities and communications.
  • Became familiar with the Congressman's responsibilities to his committees, constituents and other affiliations to effectively prioritize his time.
  • Oversaw and supported operations across the D.C. and district offices.
  • Curated and prepared materials for all speaking engagements, media interviews and meetings.
  • Staffed Rep. Cuellar for all meetings, interviews, and political events.

Education

Master of Science in Social Work (MSSW) - Social Work

Columbia University
New York, NY
2021

Bachelor of Science - Psychology

Mississippi State University
Mississippi State, MS
2014

Skills

  • Relationship building
  • Cross-functional collaboration
  • Advocacy
  • Fundraising
  • Grant management
  • Recruitment
  • Campaign compliance
  • Event planning
  • CQ Knowlegis
  • CRM database proficient
  • Certified in Motivational Interviewing, safe TALK, CSSRS and FARS

Affiliations

President Elect, Rotary Club of Birmingham Sunset (2022 - Present)


Member, National Association of Social Workers (2021- Present)


Member, New York State Society for Clinical Social Work (2020-present)


Member, Delta Gamma ( Active: 2011 - 2014 and Current Alumni)

Volunteer Experience

Birmingham Coalition for Student Mental Health; Birmingham, AL (Nov. 2021 - Present)


Advocacy Chair for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (NCAC Chapter); Washington, D.C. (Jan. 2017 - March 2018)

Publications

Contributor for the recent Child Welfare League of America publication, Becoming the Change We Seek - Stories fromCEOs in the Voluntary Sector

Internship Experience

National Association of Social Workers (Sept. 2020 - Apr. 2021)


Congressman Gregg Harper - MS-03 (Aug. 2015 - Dec. 2015)

Timeline

Chief of Staff

Gateway
11.2021 - Current

Strategic Engagement Manager

Gateway
07.2018 - 11.2021

Communications And Event Specialist

Gateway
04.2018 - 06.2018

Manager, Government Affairs/ PAC

USA Rice Federation
09.2016 - 03.2018

Executive Assistant

Congressman Henry Cuellar
01.2016 - 09.2016

Master of Science in Social Work (MSSW) - Social Work

Columbia University

Bachelor of Science - Psychology

Mississippi State University

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Breanna Pettigo Hester, LMSW