2001 Political Science alumna, Amanda Good, is the Missouri State Director at The Humane Society of the United States. Below, Amanda reflects on her career path.
After my legislative internship through Missouri State in Jefferson City I immediately went to work as the Deputy Finance Director for Joe Maxwell’s successful bid for Lieutenant Governor. After graduation I joined a national political fundraising firm and moved to Connecticut to work on Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz’s re-election campaign. After that race I returned to Missouri and went on to serve as the Finance Director for the House Democratic Campaign Committee, the Senate Democratic Campaign Committee, and various statewide campaigns. In 2008 I earned my MBA from William Woods and went on to be an adjunct professor in their undergraduate and graduate business programs.
Around that time I decided I wanted to transition into the nonprofit sector and became the Director of Membership and Fundraising Development for the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys. After nearly five years in that position the position for State Director at the Humane Society of the United States opened up, and I’ve been here since 2012. My main role is lobbying on behalf of animals at the state level and I often coordinate grassroots activity with our federal affairs team on federal legislation. This role is perfect because it allows me to work for a nonprofit organization for an issue I care deeply about, but I also get to continue to utilize my political background working on legislation and ballot measures.
I definitely owe my success to the Missouri State Legislative Internship program. It opened up so many doors for me. I encourage every political science major to pursue an internship.