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Sheryl Bailey

Visiting Professor of Practice and Adjunct Faculty

Dr. Sheryl Bailey has nearly 30 years of experience in administration and finance as a senior executive in state and local government and the private sector, including gubernatorial cabinet and state authority director experience in Virginia, as well as extensive higher education experience. She currently serves as Visiting Professor of Practice and Adjunct Faculty in the School of Public and International Affairs at Virginia Tech and as Principal of Forward Strategies Consulting, LLC. Dr. Bailey has overseen enterprise-wide administrative services for complex statewide functions and consolidated county government and public school operations, including directing several landmark initiatives that transformed operations and significantly enhanced outcomes, efficiency, and effectiveness. She has a proven record of directing broad-based strategic planning as the foundation for substantial growth and operational advancement. Dr. Bailey also has leading-edge experience at the forefront of public policy initiatives with national, state, and local government and has presented a policy briefing on Capitol Hill on the federal tax policy of municipal securities and financing infrastructure.

Dr. Bailey has a state and local record of successfully leading financial turnarounds and enhancing performance. Her extensive finance experience also includes directing Virginia’s municipal bond bank, overseeing $2.6 billion in total bond transactions and funding for multiple, diverse state bond pools in just over four years, and directing a public finance division for a national municipal advisory firm as a licensed Series 50 Municipal Advisor. She has directed complex municipal debt and capital management programs and the financial policy and planning of several regional authorities and major jurisdictions, as well as overseen the development and financing of large economic development initiatives and public-private partnerships. Throughout her career, Dr. Bailey has successfully restructured numerous bond programs and debt portfolios, achieved multiple credit rating upgrades and enhancements, increased statutory authority for
infrastructure options, and secured hundreds of millions in refunding savings.

Dr. Bailey formerly served on the Board of Directors of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board, with approval by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. She has been active for many years in the International City/County Management Association and the Government Finance Officers Association and their state affiliates, having held leadership positions and served on several national and state task forces and committees. Dr. Bailey achieved her Bachelor’s degree *summa cum laude* in Economics from Norfolk State University and her Master’s and Doctorate degrees in Economics from Harvard University. She has served as a Visiting Economist at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and on the faculties of Harvard, Virginia Commonwealth, Old Dominion and Hampton Universities; the College of William and Mary; and Virginia Tech. Dr. Bailey has so far taught the following courses for SPIA:

  • SPIA 5024: Introduction to Public and Nonprofit Financial Management
  • SPIA 5544: Public and Nonprofit Financial Management
  • SPIA 5674: Financial Health of Public and Nonprofit Organizations
  • PAPA 5316: Government Administration (II): Systems Skills for Managers
  • PAPA 6214: Public Policy Processes and Analytical Approaches
  • PAPA 6314: Public Budgeting Processes and Their Policy Implications (team-taught)