Q&A with Portsmouth Councilwoman Stefany Shaheen

Elected to the Portsmouth City Council in November 2014, Councilwoman Shaheen is also the co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of Good Measures, a Boston-based company that develops online tools and services to help people better manage their health. In 2010, she launched the company with her business partner, George Bennett, after years of contending with her oldest daughter Elle’s diagnosis with Type 1 Diabetes.

Before launching Good Measures, Councilwoman Shaheen owned and operated a management and communications consulting practice working with private and non-profit organizations. In 2006, Governor Lynch appointed Councilwoman Shaheen to serve on the New Hampshire Commission on the Status of Women and she was later appointed to Chair by the Members of the Commission. When the NH Legislature cut funding for the Commission, she worked with a team to reconstitute the Commission outside of state government by merging several non-profit organizations to form the NH Women’s Initiative.

Councilwoman Shaheen is the oldest daughter of Jeanne Shaheen, the only woman in history to be both a governor and a U.S. Senator. In the interview above, she shares her perspective on growing up in a political household, making the decision to run, and the impact people can make in public office. She also offers a compelling argument about why you should get involved in politics today.

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