The Public Policy Institute
Former Executive Director:
Judy
Meredith is the founder and executive director of the Public
Policy Institute. A veteran lobbyist, Judy has worked for more
than thirty years creating change through legislative advocacy.
Judy's lobbying experience in Massachusetts began in 1969 when
she became a volunteer lobbyist for her adoptive and foster
parent group. After ten years of working as an advocate inside
and outside of state government, she founded Meredith and Hall,
a political consulting firm known for its work with nonprofits.
Over
the years, Judy's lobbying work evolved into a coaching model in
which she guides clients through the process of developing their
own internal capacity for advocacy by mentoring staff, building
leadership skills of volunteers, and helping to broker
constructive and positive working partnerships with policy
makers.
Judy
has served as a national consultant to the Service Employees
International Union, the AFL-CIO, and the Public Affairs
Division of the United Way of America. She is currently coaching
community activists nationwide for The Access Project and the
Community Health Leaders Program.
With
her husband Peter Rider she shares the occasional company of 5
patient grown children, 3 good-natured children in law, and
eleven perfect-in-every-way grandchildren.
About the Public Policy Institute
The
Public Policy Institute's mission is to help nonprofit
organizations working for social and economic justice interpret
the current political scene, successfully promote positive
policy change, and build their organizational power - all at the
same time.
The
goal of every PPI program and activity is empower boards, staff
and volunteers to influence the public policy making process
through advanced policy analysis and skill-building sessions
focused on messaging, campaign planning, organizing grassroots
constituencies, building nontraditional coalitions and using
earned and paid media strategies.
The
PPI programs and activities are all built around this simple
principle of Real Clout: learn how to combine the standard smart
savvy tactics of informed insiders with a district based network
of trained and informed affected constituents, and you can win.
Participants in PPI programs learn the basic "rules and tools"
needed to figure out how public policy is made in state, county
and local governments and how to shape it in partnership with
key stakeholders in any public policy arena. They will learn how
to promote their "great idea" as a solution to a pressing public
problem, assess and mobilize internal and external resources,
identify and assess potential policy opportunities, identify and
recruit potential policy partners, design and implement
community education efforts with affected constituents and
promote a specific positive policy change in ways that are
consistent IRS restrictions of lobbying. They learn about the
role of short term compromises and coalitions; how the
personalities, ego and un-informed opinion of all the players,
(including themselves), affect public policy decisions; what
public policy makers in the administrative and legislative
branches respond to (and don't respond to) and they will learn
how to appreciate the critical importance of involving affected
constituents in community based public education efforts.
Organizing a comprehensive campaign, involving members and
volunteers, and monitoring the changing climate of the State
House can be frustrating and challenging.
The
Public Policy Institute offers experience, perspective, and
support to nonprofit organizations, professionals, and
coalitions... so while they may wonder what they're doing in a
place like this, they never wonder what they're doing.
Hear her speak
The Boston Foundation
From:
Speaker Biographies:
Judith C. Meredith
Founder and Executive Director
Public Policy Institute
Judy
Meredith brings over thirty years of experience creating change
through legislative advocacy. Her lobbying experience in
Massachusetts began in 1969 as a volunteer lobbyist. After ten
years of working as an advocate inside and outside of state
government, she founded Meredith and Associates in 1980, a
political consulting firm known for its work with nonprofits,
state legislative advocacy and government relations for low
income people through a group of public and private sector
clients including legal services and a range of health and human
service consumer advocacy and trade associations. Over the
years, Judy's lobbying work evolved into a coaching model taught
thorough the recently established Public Policy Institute to
help clients build their internal public policy capacity.
Judy
extensive public policy experience includes: Policy advisor and
lobbyist for children's issues for Governor Frank Sargent in the
early 70s. Assistant Director Office for Children responsible
for building and institutionalizing local Councils for Children,
1972-74. Policy advisor, Attorney General Frank Bellotti, issues
included enforcement of school reform and deinstitutionalization
of MR facilities 1974-77. Public Policy Director, Massachusetts
Fair Share--developed district based membership lobbying
campaigns around utility rate reform and tax reform issues
1977-79. National Political Director ACORN, focus on empowering
low and moderate income ACORN members through national
Presidential politics by winning delegate seats and offering
platform planks at Convention 1979-80. From January 1992 to
March 1995, she served as National Director for a Coalition of
Community Foundations for Children and Youth, a national network
of local partnerships between United Ways, Community Foundations
and children's advocacy organizations. She has served as a
national consultant to the Service Employees International
Union, the AFL-CIO, and the Public Affairs Division of the
United Way of America.
Judy
is the author of "Lobbying on a Shoestring," now in third
edition, a widely used handbook that shares an insiders view of
state advocacy in Massachusetts, and the co-author with
Catherine Dunham of "Real Clout," a handbook for community
health activists interested in increasing health access through
the public policy process.
Judy Meredith's 2008
Manifesto for Higher Taxes
Bluemassgroup Blog
Lessons Learned from
Question 1..............
by: Judy Meredith
Sun Nov 16, 2008 at 09:38:12 AM EST
What
Did We Vote For?
One
week ago, voters across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts voted
overwhelmingly to preserve our schools and youth programs. They
voted to safeguard our emergency and safety structures. They
voted to protect our elderly parents and our sick neighbors.
Our
neighbors voted against Question 1 - the repeal of our state
income tax - in the face of a national economic downturn, while
our country and state faced job losses, and amid a presidential
campaign that witnessed both parties promising tax cuts to the
middle class.
They
voted 'no' because voters understand the direct connection
between the health of our communities and the revenues that we
use to support their public structures.
We
all saw community activists working in a network across the
state, having conversations with voters in neighborhood action
groups, chambers of commerce, public and private employee
unions, local town hall meetings, and nonprofit membership
meetings.
We
began to learn what messages worked and what messages didn't
work in different communities.
The
ONE Massachusetts Network is about to begin a statewide
debriefing project to learn more from our communities and
organizational members:
Which public structures do you rely and place value on, and
where do those structures need improvement?
What
sort of changes need to be made to restore your faith that an
increase in taxes would be spent wisely and collected fairly?
ONE
Massachusetts' job is not to craft the content of a tax reform
package, but to help our network of statewide and
community-based organizations to develop a membership education
program around tax and budget policy, and to empower them to
participate in the upcoming public debate by declaring that
their communities understand the need for additional revenues -
as long as they are fairly collected and effectively used.
NEXT STEPS Join us on November 19th to discuss
what messages worked across our state.
We
are inviting public officials from the Patrick administration
and the Legislature to listen to the ideas community organizers
heard at the doors, on the phone banks, through listserves, and
in member meetings, as well as an analysis of the polls and
focus groups performed in preparation for Question One.
Add
your voice in our mission to advocate for a fair, adequate and
stable revenue structure and budget for our Commonwealth.
And
yes, we know that we will likely find ourselves competing with
each other as we advocate that our programs are the most
"sympathetic and compelling," but at least we are working
together to build a foundation of good information and smart
strategies!
The
tuition for the session is $20 and includes a light supper and
take-home materials.
Besides the Budget Punch lists, we will have a freshly-printed
second edition of the Real Clout Book and Real Clout Workbook
available at cost.
Please contact Carmen Arce-Bowen at (617) 275-2833 or carmen
[at] realclout.org to RSVP for this event, or with any
questions! Seating is limited - RSVP ASAP!
SPECIAL GUESTS
Polling and Focus Group Organizers • Coalition for Our
Communities - Jo Blum, Harris Gruman • ONE Massachusetts,
Education Voters - Yawu Miller, Michael Fogelberg
Community Organizers • Coalition for Social Justice - Deb
Fastino • Mass Affordable Housing Alliance - Cortina Vann •
Massachusetts ACORN - Mimi Ramos • Massachusetts Senior Action
Council - Carolyn Viller, Community Members • Chelsea
Collaborative - Gladys Vega, Carmen Arce-Bowen
Networks and Membership Organizations • Massachusetts Nonprofit
Network - David Magnani • Mass Advocates for the Arts, Sciences,
and Humanities - Dan Hunter
Public Officials • Massachusetts Executive Office of
Administration and Finance - Ronald Marlow • Massachusetts House
of Representatives - Denise Provost, Byron Rushing •
Massachusetts Senate - Laura Booth, Office of Senator Anthony
Gallucio, others unconfimed.
