SPEAKERS

David Wasserman is the U.S. House editor and senior election analyst for the non-partisan Cook Political Report. Founded in 1984, The Cook Political Report provides analyses of presidential, Senate, House, and gubernatorial races. The New York Times called the Cook Political Report “a newsletter that both parties regard as authoritative.”

Wasserman served as an analyst for the NBC News Election Night Decision Desk in 2016, 2012, and 2008 and has appeared on NBC Nightly News, ABC World News, C-SPAN Washington Journal, CNN, and NPR. He is a frequent contributor to FiveThirtyEight.com and his commentary has been cited in numerous outlets including POLITICO, the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, the Economist, and RealClearPolitics. In 2018, his groundbreaking interactive collaboration with FiveThirtyEight, the "Atlas of Redistricting" took top prize for News Data App of the Year at the Global Editors Network's Data Journalism Awards.

An enthusiast for data and maps, Wasserman served as a contributing writer to the 2014 and 2016 editions of the Almanac of American Politics. A frequent speaker and guest lecturer, he has shared insights into the latest political trends with audiences at Harvard's Institute of Politics, the Dole Institute of Politics, and the University of Chicago Institute of Politics. In 2014, Twitter awarded Wasserman “Best of Twitter” honors for his real-time election coverage.

Prior to joining the Cook Political Report in 2007, Wasserman served for three years as House editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball, a widely respected political analysis newsletter and website founded by renowned University of Virginia professor Larry Sabato. In that role, Wasserman led the publication to correctly predict Democrats would score a gain of 29 House seats in November 2006.

A native of New Jersey, Wasserman holds a BA in government with distinction from the University of Virginia and was awarded the 2006 Emmerich-Wright Outstanding Thesis prize for his study of congressional redistricting standards.

Jeff Canavan is the Deputy Director of the Labeling and Program Delivery Staff (LPDS) in the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) where he is responsible for leading the development and implementation of policies for food labeling, food standards, and ingredients for meat, poultry, and egg products. He has worked extensively on policy issues for food allergens, nutrition labeling, animal raising claims, and the use of novel food safety interventions. Prior to his career with FSIS, Mr. Canavan was a Captain in the U.S. Army Medical Specialist Corps. He is a registered dietitian and food technologist with a Master of Public Administration Degree and Bachelor of Science Degree in Foods and Nutrition.

Kate Meck is an International Policy Analyst with the International Affairs Staff (IAS) in the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN). She manages CFSAN's export certification program, which includes coordination of export certification activities, alignment of policies across program offices, and consolidation of information technology and administrative functions.

Prior to her current position, she spent two years as an ORISE Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Fellow in IAS. In this role, she provided technical assistance to FDA’s performance monitoring efforts and to international food safety partnerships, including the Global Food Safety Partnership, the Standards and Trade Development Facility, and Codex Alimentarius. Prior to her work with the FDA, Ms. Meck was an Associate Program Officer at the National Academies’ Institute of Medicine. She holds a master’s degree in Public Health from the George Washington University and a bachelor’s degree in International Relations from American University.

Steven Grossman is President of HPS Group, LLC, a DC-based policy and regulatory consulting firm that he started in 2001. Mr. Grossman was a co-founder of the Alliance for a Stronger FDA and continues to serve as the organization’s Deputy Executive Director. The Alliance is a multi-stakeholder coalition that advocates for increased resources for the FDA. Active since 2008, the Alliance has contributed to a doubling of FDA’s appropriation.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Grossman was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health at HHS and Health Staff Director and Counsel to the Senate HELP Committee. While on Capitol Hill, he was one of the chief Senate negotiators for the Orphan Drug Act of 1983 and the Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act of 1984 (Hatch-Waxman).