DEBORAH R. JOSPIN

 

Deborah (Deb) Jospin is partner and co-founder of sagawa/jospin, a consulting group based in Washington, D.C. Since 2001, sagawa/jospin has provided foundations and nonprofit organizations with expertise in strategic planning, board development, public policy and program design, business partnership development, coalition building and social entrepreneurship. With Shirley Sagawa, she is co-author of The Charismatic Organization: 8 Ways to Grow a Nonprofit That Builds Buzz, Delights Donors, and Energizes Employees.

Before starting her consulting career, Ms. Jospin worked as an attorney in private practice for four years and then joined the Corporation for National Service, the federal agency that oversees the AmeriCorps program. After working as Associate General Counsel and Chief of Staff of the Corporation, Ms. Jospin was appointed Director of AmeriCorps by President Clinton in 1997, a position she held until 2001. Ms. Jospin continues to actively support AmeriCorps members by serving as co-chair of Friends of AmeriCorps Alums and as a board member of ServeNext. She is also a founding member of the Washington, D.C. Local Advisory Council of Sports4Kids, a national AmeriCorps program.

Ms. Jospin is President of the Daniel A. Dutko Memorial Foundation, established in memory of her late husband Dan Dutko. Through the Foundation's Dutko Fellowship program, a select number of Tufts graduates who are interested in public policy management get their critical "first job" in Washington, D.C., working in politics, in media, or for a nonprofit organization. The fellows become part of an active network of Tufts alumni mentors who help them shape their thoughts about politics, citizenship and using power positively for social change.

Ms. Jospin graduated from Tufts University with a B.A. in 1980. While at Tufts, she was active in the Experimental College, played varsity tennis and was a long distance runner. She earned an M.Sc. in Public Policy from the London School of Economics in 1983 and went on to earn a law degree from Georgetown University in 1989. When Tufts University created the University College of Citizenship and Public Service in 1999 (since renamed the Tisch College), Ms. Jospin became a founding member of its national advisory board. She currently chairs the Tisch Board and serves as Chair of the Council of Boards of Overseers.

Ms. Jospin was elected an Alumni Trustee of Tufts University in 2002. During her five year term, she was an active member of the Academic Affairs Committee, chairing the Student Affairs Subcommittee. She chaired the Committee on Trusteeship and served on the Executive Committee. She was elected Charter Trustee in 2008.

Last updated: January 2009