President and Staff
President
Jennifer Dorning
Jennifer Dorning has led the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO (DPE) as president since 2018, and is currently serving her third elected term. She is the first woman to lead an AFL-CIO trade department. Under her leadership, DPE has strengthened and grown its coalition of unions representing more than four million professionals — from engineers, teachers, and firefighters to nurses, nonprofit employees, and creative professionals.
Jennifer has made organizing professionals a central priority, partnering with affiliates to develop campaigns that generate organizing leads, researching the attitudes of nonunion professionals, and creating resources that help unions reach and organize new members. She devised the strategic effort to organize progressive nonprofits, transforming a small unit into the robust Nonprofit Professional Employees Union.
A staunch proponent of internal strength, Jennifer has also centered member engagement in DPE's work, developing programs and regular roundtables that help affiliates deepen current members' commitment to their unions and build more active and effective memberships.
Jennifer convenes and leads the Arts Entertainment and Media Industries (AEMI) coalition — 12 national unions and the labor movement's leading voice on AEMI federal policy priorities. Key AEMI policy wins during her tenure include securing unemployment coverage for hundreds of thousands of gig workers during the pandemic, achieving record funding for the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities, and winning diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility gains at the federal level.
Before joining DPE in 2010, Jennifer worked as a criminal defense attorney, served as a legislative assistant in the Oregon state legislature, and worked on campaigns for progressive candidates and causes. She graduated cum laude from Gonzaga University School of Law and earned her bachelor's degree in political science from Portland State University.
Jennifer serves on the AFL-CIO General Board and the Labor Advisory Committee for Trade Negotiations and Trade Policy.
Assistant to the President and Legislative Director
Michael Wasser
Michael Wasser joined DPE in August 2016. At DPE, Michael is responsible for conducting outreach to labor and non-labor organizations, representing DPE before Congress on issues important to professional and technical workers, and working with affiliate unions to identify and advance issues important to professional and technical workers.
Prior to joining DPE, Michael worked for six years at Jobs With Justice (and, previous to its merger, American Rights at Work), serving most recently as senior policy analyst. Michael produced original research and led the organization’s federal policy strategy, monitoring developments related to the workplace and serving as the primary liaison to congressional offices and federal agencies.
Michael has been quoted in or written for a number of media outlets, including The Washington Post, The Hill, Huffington Post, and NPR. He also has been published in the Nevada Law Journal.
Michael is a graduate of the Schreyer Honors College at the Pennsylvania State University, with a bachelor’s degree in labor studies and employment relations and a master’s degree in human resources and employment relations. Michael is an adjunct professor of labor and employment relations at Penn State and is a member of the Labor and Employment Relations Association.
Communications Director
Katie Barrows
Katie Barrows joined DPE in November 2016. At DPE, Katie is responsible for managing DPE’s communications, including drafting and publishing press releases, coordinating and responding to media inquiries, and administering DPE’s social media accounts.
Prior to joining DPE, Katie served as communications coordinator for the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), where she worked with journalists on stories related to student and faculty rights violations on college campuses.
Katie has also worked as a congressional outreach and research assistant for LegiStorm and as a field organizer for Jay Inslee’s 2012 campaign for governor in Washington state.
Katie graduated cum laude from the University of Washington with a degree in political science in 2012.
Legislative Representative
Andy Dickson
Andy Dickson joined DPE in June 2026. At DPE, Andy is responsible for monitoring federal legislation and regulatory activity, assisting with policy research, and supporting DPE's coalition work.
Prior to joining DPE, Andy served in the Office of U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown as a member of the economic policy team and as a field organizer on several political campaigns in his home state of Ohio.
Andy graduated from Miami University with a degree in political science.