Anne Walters, Ph.D.

Anne Walters is an applied researcher and educator specializing in public sector leadership, management, and organizational governace. She currently serves as an Applied Research Associate at the Virginia Tech Institute for Policy and Governance, where she co-leads research and training initiatives, including the Virginia Public Sector Leaders program, CivilianLEAD, a leadership program for civilians at Virginia State Police, and the Leadership and Management Pathways Program at the Virginia Center for Behavioral Rehabilitation. Dr. Walters is an affiliated faculty member with Virginia Tech’s School of Public and International Affairs and teaches for the Public and Nonprofit Financial Management Graduate Certificate Program. 

In previous roles, Dr. Walters had advised a start-up company on environmental policy and clean energy technology development, taught political science at Brigham Young University, and served as Managing Editor of Administration & Society, a leading journal in public administration. Her early career includes service in the U.S. Senate as a staff assistant to Majority Leader Harry Reid, and a fellow in the Housing and Community Development Program in Memphis, Tennessee. Across these roles, she has built expertise in applied research, program evaluation, public leadership, and policy analysis. 

Dr. Walters earned her Ph.D. in Public Administration and Public Affairs from Virginia Tech, where her dissertation examined the role of advocacy groups in shaping state-level paid sick leave policy. She also holds a Master of Public Administration from the University of Memphis and a B.A. in Humanities with an emphasis in music from Brigham Young University. She spends her free time in her backyard with her three sons and her goldendoodle Rocket.