GovAct Announces New Hires for Legal, Development, Operations, and Talent & Culture Teams
New Talent & Culture Manager, Development Manager, Legal Fellow, and Special Assistant to the CEO will support GovAct’s growing team and strengthen capacity across all Alliances.
(WASHINGTON, D.C.)—Governors Action Alliance (GovAct), a nonpartisan nonprofit organization supporting coordinated governor action to protect essential freedoms and improve people’s lives, announced three new staff members joining in Development, Legal, and Talent and Culture capacities.
Megan Ahearn will serve as the organization’s new Talent & Culture Manager; Megan Flynn joins the team as a Legal Fellow; Claudia Zapata comes on board as GovAct’s new Development Manager; and a fourth hire, Guinivere Kimber, will be Special Assistant to GovAct’s CEO. These hires will help support GovAct’s growing team, strengthen internal systems, and expand our fundraising and partner engagement work.
“Sustaining GovAct’s work requires both a strong internal culture and the resources to support Governors committed to protecting fundamental freedoms,” said Julia Spiegel, Founder and CEO of GovAct. “We are excited to welcome these talented team members, whose work will help us invest in our people, deepen our partnerships, and strengthen the foundation for continued cross-state impact.”
Megan Ahearn joins GovAct with twelve years of experience working for non-profit organizations dedicated to human rights and sustainable development. Most recently, she supported a global staff of human rights attorneys as Director of Human Resources at the Clooney Foundation for Justice.
“In supporting Governors’ offices to be effective across public health, democracy, and reproductive freedom, I see GovAct’s mission as a systemic approach to improving people’s lives,” said Ahearn. “It is such a privilege to support the talented team doing this critical work as GovAct grows and plans for long-term impact.”
Megan Flynn will serve as a Legal Fellow at GovAct, following a Law Fellowship at the Impact Fund supporting complex civil rights litigation. She graduated cum laude from NYU School of Law in 2024 and interned with the ACLU’s Women’s Rights Project and the Mississippi Center for Justice, working on reproductive rights, gender discrimination, voting rights, and the right to protest.
“Federal power is increasingly undermining fundamental rights and threatening public health and safety, and states have become more important than ever in protecting their residents,” said Flynn. “I’m excited to support Governors in using the legal and policy tools available to them to respond to the challenges facing their communities.”
Claudia Zapata will work with GovAct’s Development team as a Development Manager. Prior to joining GovAct, Claudia led institutional fundraising at Workers Defense Project, managing a multimillion-dollar grants portfolio supporting worker organizing, immigrant justice, and advocacy across Texas. Her career spans nonprofit development, the Texas Legislature, political campaigns, and public policy.
“The work of GovAct and the Alliances would not be possible without our external partners, who are critical to our work,” said Zapata. “I am thrilled to join this amazing team and help sustain GovAct’s mission to support Governors in materially improving the lives of their constituents at such a critical inflection point for our nation.”
Guinivere Kimber comes on board as the Special Assistant to GovAct’s CEO. Before joining GovAct, she worked at the UCLA School of Law, supporting faculty research and teaching through academic and administrative coordination. She also has experience as a field organizer on national political campaigns, where she managed volunteers and organized county-wide canvassing events.
“I’m honored to join the GovAct team during such a turbulent and unprecedented time in American politics,” said Kimber. “I’ve seen firsthand the positive impact that can be made when nonprofits and state governments come together to create real solutions that uplift and protect people, and GovAct’s work to strengthen interstate policy collaboration, build key partnerships, and tackle some of the most pressing issues puts the organization on the front lines of this mission.”
As Talent & Culture Manager, Megan Ahearn will help foster a collaborative and high-performing workplace as GovAct continues to grow. As Legal Fellow, Megan Flynn will support legal and policy efforts across the Alliances and Initiatives. As Development Manager, Claudia will work with Development Director Pam McKee to support fundraising strategy, donor engagement, grant management, and the partnerships making GovAct’s work possible. As Special Assistant to GovAct’s CEO, Guinivere will assist with day-to-day operations.
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About GovAct:
Governors Action Alliance (GovAct) is a nonpartisan nonprofit that unites Governors to champion fundamental freedoms and improve people’s lives. GovAct incubates, launches, and runs alliances of Governors to help states share cutting-edge strategies, legal frameworks, and policy approaches to tackle today’s most pressing challenges on democracy, public health, reproductive freedom, public safety, and more. To learn more, go to www.GovActAlliance.org.