Professor Catherine Powell, Eunice Hunton Carter Distinguished Research Scholar at Fordham Law, is joining the White House this month on a 6-month assignment as a senior advisor at the White House Gender Policy Council. She’ll be the chief advisor on gender-based violence.
President Joe Biden spearheaded the 1994 Violence Against Women Act. The Biden Administration will be celebrating the 30-year anniversary of the statute (an important part of Biden’s legacy) along with the 60-year anniversary of the 1964 Civil Rights Act—both critical for addressing gender equality. Relatedly, the Gender Policy Council oversees the White House Task Force on Addressing Online Harassment and Abuse.
Powell’s teaching and scholarship focuses on a range of concerns at the intersection of human rights and equality theory, including how technology reshapes our relationship with each other, with the state, and even with ourselves.
Powell is the fourth Fordham Law faculty member to serve in an advisory role in the Biden administration. Professor Atinuke (Tinu) Adediran was named in June 2023 to serve a yearlong assignment with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as a senior advisor on racial justice. Professor Olivier Sylvain recently completed an appointment as a senior advisor to Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan. And Professor Rebecca Kysar served as counselor to the assistant secretary of tax policy in the U.S. Department of the Treasury from 2021 to 2022.