Mary L. Trupo
Senior Advisor and Director of Public Affairs
U.S. Department of Commerce
International Trade Administration
In September 2009, Mary Trupo accepted an appointment to the Obama Administration as Senior Advisor and Director for the Office of Public Affairs for the International Trade Administration (ITA). As part of the Department of Commerce, ITA is charged with strengthening the global competitiveness of U.S. industry, promoting exports, and ensuring fair trade practices. The Office of Public Affairs is responsible for developing and communicating the important messages on how exports create jobs in the U.S.
Before returning to public service, Mary was the Public Issues Director for the National Association of Realtors (NAR), responsible for the external communications of key legislative and regulatory issues important to NAR and its members. Mary worked closely with Government Affairs and Regulatory Relations to ensure that NAR policies and positions were widely communicated to various audiences in an effort to affect legislation or regulation that would impact Realtors, real estate, or the housing industry.
Prior to joining NAR, Mary was the Director of Public Affairs for the American Public Transportation Association, a large trade association comprised of both public and private sector transportation industry members. She was responsible for a $30 million program designed to improve the public’s perceptions of public transportation.
Mary is a veteran of the Clinton administration and has been actively involved in politics and the campaigns of democratic candidates for a number of years.
Mary was the assistant to the secretary and director of public affairs for the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT). At USDOT, Mary offered the Secretary and other senior administration officer’s counsel and guidance on public relations, media, strategic communications and crisis communications. Mary was a presidential appointee for the second term of the Clinton administration, also holding positions at the U.S. Department of Commerce and the White House.
Much of Mary’s professional career was spent at Kodak where she left in 1996 as the Regional Director of Communications and Public Affairs for the southern region.
A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Mary resides in Washington, D.C. She earned her bachelor degree from Old Dominion University in Virginia, and worked on her masters in public policy at American University in D.C.
The International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, manages this global trade site to provide access to ITA information on promoting trade and investment, strengthening the competitiveness of U.S. industry, and ensuring fair trade and compliance with trade laws and agreements. External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein. This site contains PDF documents. A PDF reader is available from Adobe Systems Incorporated.