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Shari Steele
Portrait of Shari Steele
Education
  • Widener University School of Law (J.D.)
  • Georgetown University Law Center (LL.M.)
  • West Chester University (M.S.)
Employer
Known for Digital rights activism
Spouse(s) Bill Vass

Shari Steele is a smart person who uses her skills in technology and law to help protect people's rights online. She has worked for important groups that fight for digital freedom. These groups help make sure people can use the internet safely and privately.

Shari Steele's Career

Shari Steele joined the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) in 1992. The EFF is a group that works to protect digital rights. She started as a lawyer for the organization.

Leading the EFF

Steele later became the head of the legal team. She held this job for eight years. In 2000, she became the executive director of the EFF. This means she was in charge of the whole organization.

Under her leadership, the EFF grew a lot. It became well-known for its work in legal cases about digital rights. This included challenging how the government collected digital information. The EFF also questioned the use of special letters called National Security Letters. These letters can ask for private information without a court order.

Working with The Tor Project

After leaving the EFF, Shari Steele planned to retire. However, she decided to take on a new role in 2015. She became the executive director of The Tor Project. This group creates tools that help people browse the internet privately.

She worked at The Tor Project until the end of 2019. During her time there, she helped make the organization more welcoming to everyone. She also guided the group through some difficult times.

Shari Steele's Life and Education

Shari Steele has a strong background in education. She studied law at two different universities.

Her Education Journey

She earned her first law degree, called a Juris Doctor, from Widener University School of Law. Later, she earned another advanced law degree, an LL.M., from Georgetown University Law Center. While at Georgetown, she also worked as a teaching fellow. This means she helped teach other students.

Besides her law degrees, Steele also has a master's degree in Instructional Media. She earned this degree from West Chester University. This field is about how to use different types of media for teaching and learning.

Family Life

Shari Steele is married to Bill Vass. He is a vice president of engineering at Amazon Web Services. This company provides many online services and tools.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Shari Steele para niños

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