Rebekah Carmichael is a communications strategist with nearly two decades of experience in federal government and higher education, specializing in real-time crisis response, strategic planning, and institutional storytelling. She helps leaders and organizations build trust, incorporate reputational risk into decision-making and to develop the skills needed to navigate complexity and crisis both internally and externally.

Before joining BMCG, Rebekah held senior communications and marketing roles at New York University, Carnegie Mellon University, and Emerson College, where she led cross-functional teams, launched strategic and crisis plans, served on senior administrative councils; and advised leadership on issues including deaths, assaults, outbreaks, and other public safety concerns; academic freedom and freedom of speech; lawsuits; data breaches; leadership and program changes; and navigating viral negative attention.

Earlier in her career, Rebekah served as a public affairs officer for the U.S. Department of Justice, with roles in the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Southern District of New York and the District of New Jersey, and as spokesperson for the Department’s Criminal Division in Washington. She advised leadership and managed media relations through high-profile matters including the prosecutions of Bernie Madoff and Viktor Bout, the resignation of Governor Eliot Spitzer, the “Bridgegate” investigation, and the Inspector General’s report on Fast and Furious.

Rebekah holds a B.A. from James Madison University and a M.A. from Rochester Institute of Technology.