Elizabeth Deal
Asst Vice President for Community & Internal Communication
UCM | University Internal Communications
Degrees
Beth earned her BA in political science from Fordham University and her MPA in urban affairs from the City University of New York, John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
Bio
Elizabeth McCabe Deal (Beth), a seasoned public affairs professional, has held leadership positions in the public, nonprofit and private sectors specializing in community relations, government affairs and communications. Widely recognized for her consensus building and problem-solving capabilities, Beth has a record of accomplishment for developing and managing community support for complex controversial policy and intergovernmental initiatives with special emphasis on social equity, urban higher education, and justice reform.
Following the 9/11 WTC attacks, she became a team leader on New York City’s Emergency Response Task Force coordinating site visits for community, national, and international leaders to Ground Zero. She was the City’s federal legislative representative in Washington, DC where she drafted, negotiated, and advocated for various City legislative issues. Beth served as Director of Government and External Relations at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. While there, she advocated for its legislative and policy agenda on federal, state, and city levels of government, advised on strategic planning and communications issues, and managed the New York Governor’s Task Force on Transforming Juvenile Justice System.
She later served as Assistant Commissioner of External Affairs and Communications at the New York State Office of Children and Family Services. In this role, she oversaw all public affairs efforts of the agency including serving as its spokesperson and crisis management expert. She directed the communications campaign to support the transformation of New York State’s juvenile justice system.
Before joining American University, she served as Communications Director for the Washington, DC- based, Justice Policy Institute. She also provided communications consulting to nonprofit and higher education organizations.
Beth currently resides in Washington, D.C. with her husband and two children.
