LaDavia Drane recently served as the Executive Director of the Congressional Black Caucus. LaDavia’s tenure on Capitol Hill began in 2009 when she joined the office of her hometown Member of Congress, Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge. LaDavia first served Congresswoman Fudge and the people of Ohio’s Eleventh Congressional District as Legislative Counsel and was later promoted to Legislative Director.

LaDavia earned her B.S. from Miami University’s Richard T. Farmer Business School and her J.D. from Cleveland State University’s Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. Following law school, LaDavia practiced law at Ulmer & Berne LLP in Cleveland where her areas of practice were business litigation, employment law, real estate, ERISA, and regulatory compliance.

LaDavia has served as Director of Legislation and Regulatory Affairs for the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, where she worked to expand access to basic banking services and advocated for affordable housing and job development for low- and moderate-income communities. She also served as Senior Director of Government Affairs at the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA), a member organization representing the world’s largest food manufacturers, grocers, and restaurants.  LaDavia advocated for GMA’s members before Congress, the White House, and federal agencies on policy issues related to health and nutrition, product labeling, and hunger policy.