Jennifer Alton, M.P.P.

Center Affiliate

Jennifer Alton is President of Pathway Policy Group.  She has spent her career successfully working at the intersection of government, external stakeholders, and media to identify and achieve win-win policy solutions through trusted relationships and tailored advocacy strategies.

Jenn has nearly two decades of experience in senior corporate and federal government roles, specializing in biotechnology, life sciences, public health, pandemic preparedness and biodefense.  Prior to launching her own consulting practice, Jenn was a senior consultant to leaders at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on external affairs strategies and organizational structure, including Congressional relations, strategic communications, and stakeholder engagement. 

Jenn previously worked in the biotechnology industry where she led the establishment of the U.S. government affairs office for a multi-national company developing vaccines for infectious diseases as well as cancer immunotherapies.  As Vice President of Public Policy and Government Affairs, Jenn led the company’s public policy and federal government affairs activities for eight years, including policy development, political advocacy, public affairs, alliance development, and trade association management.

Jenn also spent many years working on Capitol Hill where she was Public Health Policy Director for the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.  She led the development and negotiation of policy and legislation on public health issues, and successfully shepherded the bipartisan Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act into law in 2006, transforming the country’s preparedness for health security threats and establishing the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR).  She previously worked at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where she was selected as a Presidential Management Fellow focused on budget formulation and legislative affairs; she received the Secretary’s Award for Distinguished Service.

Jenn earned her Master of Public Policy degree from the University of California Los Angeles, Luskin School of Public Affairs, and Bachelors degree from Whittier College.  She also completed Columbia Business School’s High Impact Leadership Program and Wharton Business School’s Pharmaceutical and Biotech Executives Leadership Program.