Alison Feighan
President
President
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Alison launched the Feighan Team in 2015 because she wanted to create a government relations and advocacy firm committed to amplifying the voice of community development organizations and social enterprises in Washington, DC. Alison has worked in the field of community development and housing since 1984 and has over 25 years of experience as a lobbyist in Washington. In that time, she has helped numerous clients succeed as the political landscape in Washington changed. Through it all, she has seen first-hand that there is no substitute for engaging and empowering clients to be powerful advocates. She demystifies the political and legislative process and provides clients with the tools and strategic counsel they need to advance their causes, building bi-partisan support and seeking common ground. |
Recognized as a creative and tenacious advocate, Alison has experience on a range of issues including small business finance and microenterprise development, rural economic development, community development finance and venture capital, and tax credit financing. She was instrumental in crafting and enacting several critical pieces of legislation including the New Markets Tax Credit, the New Markets Venture Capital Program, the SBA Microloan Program, the SBA’s Program for Investment in Microentrepreneurs (PRIME), and the Community Advantage (CA) loan guarantee. In addition, she has extensive experience helping clients secure and increase funding for their work in traditionally underserved urban and rural communities. Alison works with a wide range of federal agencies including the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Treasury and the Small Business Administration.
Built on a solid foundation of service, organizing and advocacy, Alison launched a unique lobbying firm that combines the power of what they know and who they know to advance the interests of their ‘game changer’ clients.
Before coming to Washington, Alison lived in Boston where she worked on community reinvestment and Fair Housing issues and helped launch an affordable housing program for a community action agency in Quincy, Massachusetts.
Alison is a proud native of Cleveland, Ohio. She holds a Master of Arts in Urban and Environmental Policy from Tufts University and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Michigan.
Built on a solid foundation of service, organizing and advocacy, Alison launched a unique lobbying firm that combines the power of what they know and who they know to advance the interests of their ‘game changer’ clients.
Before coming to Washington, Alison lived in Boston where she worked on community reinvestment and Fair Housing issues and helped launch an affordable housing program for a community action agency in Quincy, Massachusetts.
Alison is a proud native of Cleveland, Ohio. She holds a Master of Arts in Urban and Environmental Policy from Tufts University and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Michigan.
Mary J. Childs-Mayer
Policy Advocate
Policy Advocate
Mary joined The Feighan Team as a Policy Advocate in February 2022. She brings more than two decades of experience related to economic and community development advocacy with a focus on the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) industry. Childs-Mayer will provide mission-driven community development organizations with the strategic advice, insights, and tools needed to implement successful advocacy campaigns and legislative strategy to clients in a variety of industries.
Mary most recently worked as a private consultant working with a national CDFI to carry out all aspects of the U.S. Small Business Administration Paycheck Protection Program and the New York Forward working capital program. She held the positions of Government Relations Director and Small Business Development Manager for the National Development Council (NDC) headquartered in New York City. She brought her expertise to classrooms across the country while teaching NDC’s core finance courses to practitioners studying to earn their Economic Development Finance Professional (EDFP) certification. At the beginning of her 23-year career, Ms. Childs-Mayer was the first Portfolio Manager for NDC’s Grow America Fund (GAF), then, the nation’s only non-profit national SBA 7(a) lender.
Mary most recently worked as a private consultant working with a national CDFI to carry out all aspects of the U.S. Small Business Administration Paycheck Protection Program and the New York Forward working capital program. She held the positions of Government Relations Director and Small Business Development Manager for the National Development Council (NDC) headquartered in New York City. She brought her expertise to classrooms across the country while teaching NDC’s core finance courses to practitioners studying to earn their Economic Development Finance Professional (EDFP) certification. At the beginning of her 23-year career, Ms. Childs-Mayer was the first Portfolio Manager for NDC’s Grow America Fund (GAF), then, the nation’s only non-profit national SBA 7(a) lender.
Hannah Toriz Perez
Policy and Operations Manager
Policy and Operations Manager
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Hannah is the Policy and Operations Manager for the Feighan Team. She is passionate about mission-driven advocacy for underserved communities and has worked for multiple nonprofit organizations focused on affordable housing and immigration reform before joining the Feighan Team. After moving from Los Angeles to Providence in 2017, Hannah served as an AmeriCorps member at the Smith Hill Community Development Corporation (CDC). There, she worked as the Resident Services Coordinator, providing crucial resources, eviction prevention services, and case management. Additionally, she organized educational workshops on topics like credit awareness, avoiding predatory services, money management, and fair housing laws for tenants. Hannah then joined the Immigrant Coalition of Rhode Island, collaborating with over 40 local partners and community members to promote community engagement and deliver immigrant rights workshops. Notably, she spearheaded the "Driver Licenses for All" campaign, advocating for legislation to grant all Rhode Island residents the ability to obtain a driver's license, regardless of their immigration status. |
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Photography by Sam Levitan.