Sterling McDowell (she/her) is an undergraduate student at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, studying Public Policy and Creative Writing. Originally from rural Northeast Texas, she is interested in the ways storytelling and civic engagement shape public understanding and present activism.  

Sterling has previously worked for Common Cause Education Fund and The Women’s Network, in regard to national political communications and facilitating partnership opportunities. She currently serves as a Trusted Researcher for Ballotpedia, contributing to efforts that expand public access to reliable voter information. Through these experiences, she has developed a deep appreciation for the role that education plays in strengthening democratic participation. 

Alongside her policy and communications work, Sterling is a published poet who interrogates the cultural friction of the American South through the lens of her own intersecting identities. Across both her creative and professional pursuits, she is drawn to stories that challenge dominant narratives; as her passion for women’s history stems from a belief that a fuller understanding of the past empowers brighter possibilities for the future.