Carrie O’Rourke joined the Florida Association of REALTORS® as Vice President of Public Policy in 2015. In this position, Carrie directs all public policy activities, programs, product and services. She sets the direction of current and future public policy proposal and activities and she is responsible for RPAC fundraising. Carrie is charged with ensuring direct and positive contact with members at all levels of the Florida Legislature, Regulatory Agencies, Cabinet and other government officials. Prior to joining the team at Florida Realtors, Carrie was the Associate Vice Chancellor, Government Relations for the State University System of Florida. Carrie also served three years in Governor Scott’s administration as Director External Affairs and Deputy Chief of Staff where she oversaw several Executive State Agencies vital to the State’s economic growth, including the Departments of Economic Opportunity; Transportation; Education; Environmental Protection; Business and Professional Regulation; Florida Housing and Finance Corporation; Workforce Florida; and Enterprise Florida . Prior to her government service, Carrie served as the Deputy Finance Director for Governor Rick Scott’s gubernatorial campaign and as the Finance Director during the Republican gubernatorial primary for Attorney General Bill McCollum. Her professional career in Florida began as the Director of Organizational Development and Government Relations for EDIFY, LLC as she worked to expand the company’s public sector portfolio. Before returning to Florida in 2006, Carrie spent seven years working overseas in Central Asia starting as a Peace Corps volunteer and ending with Mercy Corps where she managed a series of United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded programs on a variety of issues from environmental advocacy, conflict mitigation to economic development. Originally from Miami, Carrie graduated from Miami Palmetto Senior High and earned her Bachelor’s in Economics and Political Science from St. Joseph’s University, Philadelphia and her Master’s in Public Administration with a focus in International Policy from Rutgers University.