Rev. Jennifer Butler, Executive Director

Rev. Jennifer Butler is Executive Director of Faith in Public Life. An ordained Presbyterian minister, Butler most recently served as the Presbyterian Church (USA) Representative to the United Nations (UN). During her nine years at the UN, Butler represented the denomination on a range of issues, including women’s rights, genocide in the Sudan, and the war in Iraq. As a member of the UN Executive Council of the Committee of Religious Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs), Butler was a leading spokesperson and published author on the issues of religion and human rights. Her book on the Christian Right and international policy was published by the Pluto/University of Michigan Press in October 2006.

Butler served in the Peace Corps from 1989 to 1991 in a Mayan village in Belize, Central America. A graduate of Princeton Seminary, she holds a Master of Social Work from Rutgers University and Bachelor of Arts from the College of William and Mary. She grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, and is married to Glenn Zuber; they have one son, Eli. Butler attends church at Journey’s Crossing in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Katie Paris, Director of Communications Strategy

Katie Paris* is Director of Communications Strategy at Faith in Public Life. Paris most recently served as Research Director for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), following her tenure as the first Research Director of Media Matters for America. A veteran communications and research professional, Paris has worked on a several senatorial and gubernatorial campaigns, as well as John Edwards's 2004 presidential bid.

Paris holds a Bachelor of Arts from Wesleyan University. She was born in Atlanta, Georgia, where her father is a Methodist minister, and grew up in Asheville, North Carolina. Paris attends St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Washington, DC’s Capitol Hill neighborhood.

*Note name change from Barge to Paris.

Rev. Ron Stief, Director of Organizing Strategy

Ron Stief is Director of Organizing Strategy at Faith in Public Life. Stief served as Director of the Washington Office United Church of Christ (UCC) where he designed and oversaw the UCC’s innovative national civic participation and election program, directed the implementation of state policy campaigns and was instrumental in building the UCC’s successful online advocacy site. Before coming to FPL, Stief was Director of the California Office of People for the American Way and Senior Adviser to the Center for American Values in Public Life. Stief has been an organizer in the religious community for over 20 years, most recently working in the 2004 and 2006 election cycles to ensure that progressive values drove the discussion among candidates, religious leaders, and voters.

Stief is a graduate of Berkeley’s Pacific School of Religion, with a Masters of Divinity and an MA in Social Ethics. He earned his BA in Philosophy at the University of Montana. Stief is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ.

Dan Nejfelt, Communications Associate

Dan Nejfelt is a communications associate at Faith in Public Life. Nejfelt most recently worked as media coordinator for Christian Peace Witness for Iraq. He also previously served on Sojourners magazine’s editorial staff as part of his master’s degree project at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, where he studied investigative and magazine journalism.

Nejfelt taught remedial literacy in rural Arkansas as a Teach For America corps member after graduating from the College of William & Mary with a Bachelor of Arts in history. He is a native of Manassas, VA and was raised in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Beth Dahlman, Special Assistant to the Executive Director

Beth Dahlman comes to Faith in Public Life after completing the Lobby Associate program at NETWORK--A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby, where she focused on immigration policy and communications. She now serves on the board of the NETWORK Education Program. Dahlman has also worked with Lake Research Partners, a progressive public opinion research firm, and interned with Interfaith Worker Justice, a national organization that mobilizes the religious community to imrpove conditions for workers.

Dahlman graduated summa cum laude from the College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph, Minnesota, where she received her Bachelor of Arts in theology. Dahlman is a native of Delano, Minnesota and is now a member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Washington, D.C.