
Tracy Dunne
Consultant
ABOUT TRACY DUNNE
Born and raised in the suburbs of Detroit, MI, Tracy Dunne relocated to Sacramento, California in the 70s when her father, with a lifelong dream of retiring to California after having been stationed there in the army, retired from Ford Motor Co.
With midwestern modesty and grit, and a love for the English language, Tracy taught college English for a few years to both native and non-native speakers, and changed course midstream and joined the law and lobbying firm Nossaman, Guthner, Knox & Elliott in their Sacramento office, working in the lobbying practice as a legislative assistant and for the association management division.
From there, Tracy transitioned into the public sector, first working in the California State Legislature in political communications for the Speakers Office of Member Services. Tracy then served as press secretary to the Assembly Majority Whip and worked for other legislators as well. Governor Gray Davis then appointed Tracy as director of communications for the State and Consumer Services Agency, the largest state agency at the time. This service occurred during the energy crisis that defined the Davis Administration. It was this varied communications experience that honed Tracy’s craft in writing targeted political and public policy communications for a variety of audiences across multiple engagement platforms.
After leaving the Capitol, Tracy focused for a time on raising her family, subsequently returning to the public sector, as community relations manager and public information officer for the City of Pleasanton. In this role, she was responsible for the day-to-day communications and public engagement, helped develop the City’s first master communications plan, drafted the Mayor’s public engagement communications, implemented the City’s quarterly print newsletter (delivered to every household) and expanded the City’s social media audience.
Most recently, Tracy has been consulting with city and county governments. This work has primarily focused on crisis management, direct public engagement and community organizing. Her recent city government work has been to strategize and execute public awareness campaigns pertaining to local candidates and ballot measures.
Tracy’s trifecta of public sector work at all levels—state, county and local, has provided her with a unique set of skills to effectively navigate and manage communications on several different stages, large and small.
EDUCATION
California State University, Sacramento, B.A., M.A.