Kerry O’Hare is a strategic advisor to Carpi & Clay and brings over 30 years’ experience working with governors, mayors, Members of Congress, Cabinet level officials, trade associations and the infrastructure stakeholder community. Her background has been in transportation and infrastructure policy where she has excelled at achieving results.
Her experience includes serving as Vice President and Director of Policy for Building America’s Future – a bipartisan coalition of state and local officials advocating for a smart and strategic long-term infrastructure plan to enhance America’s economic prosperity and quality of life.
Prior to joining Building America’s Future, Kerry held several high-level positions at the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) including Deputy Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration where she provided executive leadership to an agency with more than 2,500 employees and an annual budget of $40 billion. She also served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Governmental Affairs and was the chief liaison to state and local officials on behalf of the U.S. Secretary of Transportation.
While at USDOT, Kerry was part of a select team that implemented the Secretary’s National Strategy to Reduce Congestion on America’s Transportation Network. The team worked to educate state and local leaders as well as the business community in targeted states about how to develop innovative ways to address traffic congestion.
She is a two-time recipient of the Secretary’s Gold Medal which is the USDOT’s highest award.
Kerry also served as the Deputy Director in the Office of Federal Affairs for a New York Governor where she devised and coordinated New York’s federal transportation reauthorization strategy. Additionally, she has extensive experience on Capitol Hill where she served as a Legislative Director to a Member of Congress and a Legislative Assistant to U.S. Senator.
Kerry is a member of the Road Gang and of WTS International where she serves as the Vice Chair of the Legislative Committee. Outside of her professional responsibilities, she recently served as the Chair of the Mount Vernon Women’s Golf Association and volunteers at the Arlington Food Assistance Center. She graduated from Albright College with a Bachelor of Arts in Government Service. She is also a graduate of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ National Transportation Leadership Institute.