Brandon W. Ledford doesn’t do things halfway. By day, he’s the senior vice president and general manager of MGT, a public-sector consulting firm that helps state and local governments tackle everything from cybersecurity to compensation fairness.
By night—well, evenings and weekends—he puts his 2011 Schar School of Policy and Government master of public policy (MPP) degree into practice as vice president of the Borough Council in Dormont, Pennsylvania, a community of 8,000 bordering Pittsburgh.
As it happens, the borough manager, John Stinner, is also a Schar School graduate. (See Stinner’s story on this page.) The two did not know each other at George Mason University.
“When he said we had the same degree, I thought he meant an MPP, not necessarily an MPP from George Mason,” Stinner said.
For Ledford, being a councilmember is personal.
At age 9, Ledford was diagnosed with the African form of Burkitt’s lymphoma, an incredibly rare and aggressive cancer. He was the third known case in the United States—and the first to survive.
But survival came with consequences. His mother, forced to miss work to care for him, lost her job. That was just as the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was being passed, and a pro bono attorney helped her fight for reinstatement.
“We were on public assistance because of medical bills,” Ledford said. “So, growing up, I got to see government protecting folks in their neediest, and I wanted to dedicate my life to this.”
While earning an MPP degree with concentrations in science and technology policy at George Mason, he interned for a semester at the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy, a perfect fit.
After graduating with his degree, Ledford, 41, spent years in federal government consulting, working for Deloitte U.S., Booz Allen, and now MGT. But he never lost his belief in the power of local government.
In Dormont, as a councilperson (there are seven) and chair of the public safety, building and code enforcement committee, he’s championed initiatives such as a façade grant program to revitalize the town’s business district and, particularly, a robust family leave policy for borough employees.
“You can have a much bigger impact locally,” he said. “The time from idea to implementation is way shorter. It doesn’t take, literally, acts of Congress to get things done.”
Ledford has lived and worked in the highest levels of government. But in a town where he knows his neighbors and can see change happen firsthand, he’s found where he can make the biggest difference.
“It started with wanting to be involved in politics,” he said. “But when we had our first daughter, I really liked the community we were in. I thought, ‘We can do great things here.’”
The Schar School is working to assist those considering careers in government, nonprofit, and government-adjacent organizations by offering application fee waivers, discount pricing, flexible and customizable courses, and other programs. Find out more about “upskill” and retooling certificate and degree programs at this webpage.