FOUNDER and PRESIDENT

Michael Wear is the Founder, President and CEO of The Center for Christianity and Public Life, a nonpartisan, nonprofit institution based in the nation's capitol with the mission to contend for the credibility of Christian resources in public life, for the public good. For well over a decade, he has served as a trusted resource and advisor for a range of civic leaders on matters of faith and public life, including as a White House and presidential campaign staffer. Michael is a leading voice on building a healthy civic pluralism in twenty-first century America. He has argued that the kind of people we are has much to do with the kind of politics we will have.

Michael previously led Public Square Strategies, a consulting firm he founded that helps religious organizations, political organizations, businesses and others effectively navigate the rapidly changing American religious and political landscape.

Michael’s first book, Reclaiming Hope: Lessons Learned in the Obama White House About the Future of Faith in America, offers reflections, analysis and ideas about the role of faith in the Obama years and what it means for today. He has co-authored, or contributed to, several other books, including Compassion and Conviction: The AND Campaign's Guide to Faithful Civic Engagement, with Justin Giboney and Chris Butler. He also writes for The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Catapult Magazine, Christianity Today and other publications on faith, politics and culture.

Michael holds an honorary position at the University of Birmingham’s Cadbury Center for the Public Understanding of Religion. Michael and his wife, Melissa, are both proud natives of Buffalo, New York. They now reside in Maryland, where they are raising their beloved daughters, Saoirse and Ilaria.

CHIEF OF STAFF and SENIOR ADVISOR

Phebe Meyer is the Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor for The Center for Christianity and Public Life, building the organizational structure and designing the programmatic direction and strategy for the organization alongside the President and CEO. She brings with her a wealth of experience establishing partnerships between unlikely allies to promote the common good; consulting start-up organizations and initiatives on their vision and brand; and working across corporate, nonprofit, and philanthropic sectors to co-create high-impact cause campaigns. Phebe has worked with major family foundations, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and Annie E. Casey Foundation, building partnerships with conservative faith organizations and center-right political organizations to further economic opportunity and mobility policy issues.

Before CCPL, she was a Senior Associate at The Clapham Group, a social impact agency working at the intersection of politics, faith, and culture. Phebe is also a founding partner of We Own Now, an organization founded by Grammy Award-winning artist, Derek Minor, that exists to celebrate Black ownership and shrink the racial wealth gap through storytelling, education, and policy advocacy.

Phebe is a graduate of the College of William & Mary, with a B.A. in Socio-Cultural Anthropology. She resides in Arlington, Virginia, just a hop away from Capitol Hill and also where she went to preschool.