Keesha Gaskins-Nathan
Keesha Gaskins-Nathan is the director for the Democratic Practice–United States program at the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and the lead on its Racial Justice Initiative. She is dedicated to advancing measures and ideas that improve democratic systems and engage democratic culture in the United States to support full and fair democratic and economic opportunity for all residents.
Keesha serves on the boards of Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning & Engagement (CIRCLE) at Tufts University, Democracy Works, Funders Committee on Civic Participation, The Workers Lab, and The Partnership Funds. She also brings her talents to the Columbia World Projects – Inclusive Cities, Civic Technology Working Group and the PACE Faith and Democracy Initiative.
Prior to joining the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Keesha was senior counsel with the Brennan Center for Justice, serving as the director of the Redistricting and Representation program. Her portfolio included redistricting reform, voting rights, and elections, with a focus on voter suppression issues. She also served as executive director for the League of Women Voters Minnesota and executive director for the Minnesota Women’s Political Caucus.
Keesha is a long-time organiser, lobbyist and trial attorney. After attending law school at Northeastern University School of Law, she served as a shared judicial clerk for the Honorable Alan Page and the Honorable Joan Ericksen at the Minnesota Supreme Court. She also served as a special assistant appellate public defender for the State of Minnesota.
She is a frequent lecturer and commentator on issues related to women and politics, movement building, and democratic reform, including past appearances on PBS’s NewsHour, MSNBC, and Bill Moyers. She has also written numerous articles and publications on voter suppression, voting rights, and redistricting. Keesha was the 2021 – 2022 Daynard Public Interest Visiting Fellow at Northeastern University School of Law, 2019 Aspen Ideas Festival Scholar, and 2008 Feminist Leadership Fellow at University of Minnesota, HHH Institute of Public Affairs.
Currently, she serves as an adjunct professor with the School of International and Public Policy at Columbia University.