Michele Holt-Shannon is director and co-founder for New Hampshire Listens at the UNH Carsey School of Public Policy. Her work on and off campus is focused on inclusive civic engagement, community problem-solving, and building coalitions for community initiated change efforts. She joined Carsey in 2011 to focus on process design to ensure fair, inclusive, and informed outcomes for local and statewide projects. She works to bring people together across perspectives and backgrounds to solve problems and create equitable solutions for their communities. Michele is consulted on navigating controversial community issues, addressing racial equity, and fostering organizational and community cultures of sustainable and authentic civic engagement. Recent projects include Learning exchanges on racial equity, statewide conversations on the American dream and NH’s kids, mental health and substance use, community police relations, and water sustainability.
Michele is a Senior Associate with Everyday Democracy and a 2018 Better Selves Knoll Farm Fellow. She is a graduate of Leadership New Hampshire, Class of 2013.
She earned her MA in higher education and human development from Bowling Green State University, an MTS in world religions and theological studies from Boston College, and a BS in biology and psychology from the University of Alabama.
