Currently an adjunct instructor for the University of Virginia’s Politics Department, Mary Kate Cary teaches small seminars for undergraduate students: “Political Speechwriting,” and “Democracy Out Loud,” which studies the greatest speeches in American political history.  Mary Kate also co-teaches “Election 2024” before 500 undergraduates — leading the one of the only political science classes in America taught from both sides of the aisle. In 2021, Mary Kate served on UVA’s Committee on Free Expression and Free Inquiry, which produced the University’s policy on free speech.  She is the director of  Think Again @ UVA, an initiative to promote free speech, viewpoint diversity, critical thinking, and intellectual humility through student-facing programming. 

Mary Kate was a White House speechwriter for President George H.W. Bush, served as spokesman for then-Attorney General Bill Barr during the Bush Administration, and as Deputy Director of Communications at the Republican National Committee under Haley Barbour.  She currently serves as the chair of the advisory council for the George and Barbara Bush Foundation, and is the executive producer of 41ON41, an award-winning documentary film about President George H.W. Bush.  For the last three decades, she has written speeches for a variety of business, political, and non-profit leaders.