UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Erin Wachter has joined Penn State’s Office of Government and Community Relations as the next director of state relations.
“We are thrilled to welcome Erin to our team — she will be an exceptional addition with a wealth of relevant experience and valuable connections in the state Capitol,” said Zack Moore, Penn State vice president for Government and Community Relations. “Her dynamic energy and passion for Penn State's land-grant mission will provide valuable support to our office’s vision of aiding Penn Staters in highlighting the positive impact of campuses, colleges and units to governments and communities through effective advocacy and communication strategies.”
As director of state relations, Wachter will aid advocacy efforts in Harrisburg to increase state appropriations for Penn State while also engaging with the Pennsylvania General Assembly to advance state-related policies that benefit Penn State’s students, faculty and staff.
“As a lifelong Pennsylvania native who has worked and grown up in the agricultural industry, I’ve seen firsthand the impact Penn State has on communities across the commonwealth,” said Wachter. “I am eager to add my voice and experience to a great team and champion Penn State’s mission to those in the Pennsylvania General Assembly.”
Wachter’s experience includes 12 years of governor’s office and state agency leadership, and nonprofit sector lobbying. She comes to Penn State after recently working as deputy director of the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority, serving as staff and policy lead for the Pennsylvania Broadband Office and its planning efforts for more than $1 billion in federal infrastructure funding for broadband deployment.
“Erin's wealth of administrative experience promises to make an immediate and positive impact on our state lobbying efforts,” said Mike Stefan, Penn State assistant vice president for state relations. “With her extensive knowledge of agricultural issues and her notable contributions to shaping Pennsylvania policy, she is the perfect fit for Penn State. I am privileged to work with Erin and witness her forthcoming successes.”
Her wealth of experience in Harrisburg includes four years in former Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration as deputy secretary of policy and planning, leading policy priorities with the departments of Agriculture, Community and Economic Development, Transportation, and others. During her time in the governor’s office, she helped negotiate Act 96 of 2021 to establish the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority and coordinated the development of the Pennsylvania Farm Bill, resulting in more than $76 million invested in Pennsylvania agriculture.
Wachter’s career extends further to previous roles as director of advocacy and public policy at the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank and as policy director at the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. While at the department, she managed a team of partners to implement one of the nation’s first milk-to-food-bank initiatives, connecting dairy processors directly with food banks to provide a long-term, sustainable supply of milk to food bank clients across the commonwealth.
Wachter earned her bachelor’s degree in politics at Juniata College in 2009 and obtained a master’s degree in public administration from Penn State in 2012. She grew up on a dairy farm in Palmyra and still resides close to the family farm with her husband and two small children.