Our Staff

Keary McCarthy is the Executive Director of the Ohio Mayors Alliance. Keary helped form the Ohio Mayors Alliance in 2016 to build greater collaboration among Ohio’s mayors and stronger partnerships between local, state, and federal lawmakers. Keary brings two decades of experience in government and politics to his role. He previously served as the Minority Chief of Staff in the Ohio House of Representatives and as the Chief of Communications and Policy at the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. Keary has also worked on a variety of statewide campaigns in Ohio, including the 2008 presidential campaign. He received his bachelor’s degree in history from Wittenberg University and his master’s in urban affairs from Cleveland State University. Keary is a lifelong Ohio resident and lives in Columbus with his wife, Lori, and their two young children.

Email: keary@ohiomayorsalliance.org

Sarah is a lawyer and policy advocate who began her career at legal aid, operating a legal clinic in a westside Chicago high school and directing a domestic violence project. Sarah’s policy work prior to joining the Ohio Mayors Alliance focused on education policy, child poverty, and child health policy. As Policy Director at OMA, Sarah oversees a variety of policy initiatives and credits her legal aid experience for giving her a good understanding of how individual substantive issues work together to form a holistic picture of challenges impacting Ohio cities and policymakers. Sarah grew up in rural northwest Ohio. As a result, Sarah is passionate about using data and high quality research to craft public policy that works for people in all neighborhoods and communities in Ohio. Sarah has two daughters, a super smart and supportive husband, two naughty dogs who give excellent kisses and schnuffles, and one extremely fluffy cat.

Email: sarah@ohiomayorsalliance.org

Shawn Kasych serves as the Ohio Mayors Alliance’s external legislative affairs manager. In this capacity, Shawn helps manage all legislative affairs in the Ohio General Assembly on behalf of the Ohio Mayors Alliance and serves as the organization’s main point of contact in the halls of the Statehouse.

Shawn brings over sixteen years of state government experience in both the public and private sector. Prior to Shawn joining the Ohio Mayors Alliance, he served as Chief of Staff of the Ohio House of Representatives where he managed the day-to-day operations of the Ohio House of Representatives, including supervision of 160+ staff, and served as principal advisor to House leadership on legislative policy and management issues. Shawn was the House’s chief liaison with the Office of the Governor, Ohio Senate and all other statewide elected officials and agencies on all legislative matters. He also served as Policy Director for the Ohio House of Representatives where he developed a critical understanding of the legislative process and knowledge on key policy areas including the state operating and capital budgets, public utilities, healthcare, education, economic development, telecommunications, technology and broadband development.

Shawn is a proud graduate of Saint Ignatius High School in Cleveland, Ohio, and a graduate of Ohio State University.