Sophie Shulman, who began her career as a presidential management fellow, served as acting director of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration in the Department of Transportation (DOT) from November 2016 to January 2017.

Shulman is from Seattle, where she graduated from the Lakeside School in 2006. She then went east for college, earning a B.A. in international studies in 2010 and an M.A. in American foreign policy, international economics from Johns Hopkins University in 2011.

S­hulman’s first federal job was in May 2011 in the Department of Energy in the Presidential Management Fellow Program, serving as a special assistant in the office of the secretary. In September 2012, Shulman moved to the Office of Management and Budget in the Natural Resources, Energy and Science Program.

In April 2013, Shulman took a job in the White House as deputy press secretary and executive secretary for the Domestic Policy Council, moving up to deputy press secretary in November. In July 2014, Shulman was named the council’s deputy chief of staff.

She moved to DOT in June 2015, first as a policy adviser in the office of the secretary, then, in April 2016, as senior policy adviser. While at DOT, Shulman worked on the Smart City Challenge, in which medium-sized cities were given the opportunity to come up with plans for integrated efficient transportation systems optimizing technology and data.

-Steve Straehley

To Learn More:

Laying the Groundwork for Innovation (by Sophie Shulman)