The Junior Statesmen Foundation Announces New Executive Leadership Team

Silicon Valley executive elected non-profit’s CEO, while 20-year JSA veteran promoted to executive director of 70-year leader in high school civic education

The Junior Statesmen Foundation, a leader in civic education for high school students since 1934, said today that it has established a new senior executive leadership team, with David Viotti having been elected Chief Executive Officer by the Foundation’s trustees and Jeff Harris having been promoted to Executive Director.

“The Junior Statesmen program changes the lives of more high school students than any other and this new leadership team will help us connect the next generation of citizens to all the debates – pro and con, partisan and non-partisan – that will be at the heart of America's democracy,” said Mike McCurry, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The Junior Statesmen Foundation and former White House Press Secretary.

“Junior Statesmen has chosen wisely in the combination of talents it now enjoys at the senior executive level,” he said.

Previously, Viotti served as U.S. chief learning officer for Sun Microsystems Inc., where he was responsible for the training and development needs of Sun’s U.S. customers, employees and partners. Prior to this job, Viotti served in various senior management roles at Sun. Earlier, he worked for many years as a corporate attorney representing public and private companies in business and litigation matters.

Viotti has an extensive knowledge of domestic and international politics and law, both as a student and a practitioner. He has advanced degrees in these fields from Oxford and Georgetown universities and worked with the United Nations in Malaysia and with the Hong Kong Legislative Council.

Viotti’s ties to The Junior Statesmen Foundation began when he attended one of the group’s summer programs while a student at Ramparts High School in his native Colorado Springs, Colo. He also worked in several temporary positions with the foundation and most recently served as vice president of foundation’s board of trustees.

Harris has been involved in all aspects of the Junior Statesmen program for 20 years – as a high school student leader while at University High School in Los Angeles, program director, civic educator and mentor to students. His career highlights include creating the Junior State’s popular student-run Congressional simulation format and spearheading the foundation’s urban outreach programs.

Earlier, Harris directed 14 sessions of The Junior Statesmen Summer School and oversaw the successful expansion of the Summer School sessions at Georgetown University. Noteworthy are Harris’ accomplishments in educating youth about local politics in Los Angeles and Orange counties through the dozens of programs he has administered and for which he created curricula.

Harris majored in political science at U.C. Berkeley where he was a student activist and served in the student government.   As a high school student, he was honored with the Junior State of America's prestigious "Statesman of the Year" award.

As Chief Executive Officer, Viotti will provide overall management of the foundation in consultation with the trustees, JSA’s student leadership and staff. His primary areas of focus will include implementing the strategic direction of the program, diversifying and broadening its base of support, communicating its vision to key stakeholders in the community, and growing its national footprint through innovative partnerships and programs.

As Executive Director, Harris will provide the operational leadership and management of the year-round and summer programs, including budget and fiscal management, staff development and organizational and process improvement. He will also have a primary role in working with the student governors and staff to develop and ensure that the quality of the nationwide educational programs meet the students’ needs and align with the group’s core values. 

Viotti and Harris will work closely on strategic planning, business and financial analysis, organizational design and budget planning, and external communications and public relations.