Pauline Abernathy

Pauline oversees BDT’s Policy, Innovation & Product, Government Innovation, Higher Education Innovation, and Communications and Marketing departments. She brings over 25 years of experience in federal and local government, philanthropy, and nonprofit policy analysis and advocacy organizations. Prior to joining BDT, Pauline was Executive Vice President of The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS). As Senior Advisor to the Mayor of Philadelphia, she partnered with BDT to launch BenePhilly, a city-wide initiative that has now secured hundreds of millions of dollars in benefits for low-income Philadelphians through highly targeted outreach and enrollment assistance and partnerships with community-based organizations. Pauline was also Deputy Director of Health and Human Services at The Pew Charitable Trusts and served in senior positions at the U.S. Department of Education and the White House National Economic Council and Domestic Policy Council. Pauline earned her BA from Yale University and has a Master’s in Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.