Kaitlyn Vitez is Complete College America’s policy director. She is a fierce advocate for students, organizing to make college more affordable. Kaitlyn joins CCA from the U. S. Department of Education, where she was the Office of Communications and Outreach’s higher education liaison. In that role, she supported a wide range of associations, advocacy organizations, and other stakeholders in the postsecondary space to participate in the Department’s policymaking efforts. Kaitlyn led many of the Department’s outreach campaigns with partners on the Biden Administration’s biggest priorities. She helped millions of borrowers access lower-cost repayment plans and Public Service Loan Forgiveness, assisted colleges and community-based organizations in FAFSA completion efforts, and promoted best practices to ensure student success and meet their basic needs.
Previously, Kaitlyn served as the federal government relations officer for the American Association of University Professors and as the higher education campaigns director for the Student Public Interest Research Group. She trained national networks of activists on the skills to influence state, federal, and administrative policy, notching concrete wins to lower textbook costs and protect student loan borrowers.
Kaitlyn is originally from New Jersey, where she began her career as a community organizer, working with students at Rutgers University in New Brunswick and Newark. She graduated in 2015 with a B.A. from the University of Vermont.