Stephen White is the vice president of external affairs, strategic initiatives and business development at the Center of Science and Industry (COSI) in Columbus, Ohio. He also serves as the museum’s in-house counsel. He has been contributing to COSI’s strategic vision, mission and leadership since February 2018.
White is directly responsible for creating and implementing a global strategy for government relations, leading the development and execution of the science museum’s strategic plan, and developing and optimising a business model for opportunities. Additionally, he serves as the museum’s general legal counsel and works across the institution alongside all of its departments.
A respected figure in the local, state and federal civic communities, White has more than 10 years’ experience in navigating the political and policy landscape to ensure effective partnerships and positive outcomes. He previously served as the general counsel and Central Ohio Director for US Senator Rob Portman. He also worked at the Ohio Supreme Court, the Ohio Senate and the law firm of Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP.
In addition to creating a statewide framework for funding to fight the opioid crisis, White is passionate about serving the community. Alongside early childhood non-profit SproutFive, he has worked on a new early childhood ‘Learning Lunchbox’ kit initiative, which is being developed in partnership with NASA. COSI has distributed more than 100,000 Learning Lunchbox kits across 10 states and three countries to date,
The Association of Midwest Museums said White has “dedicated his career to addressing education equity with a personal focus toward servant leadership”. It added: “In response to the growing disparities in education, Stephen created and now leads the Learning Lunchbox model of engagement to deliver learning alongside meals at food banks with the goal to, as he puts it, ‘feed hungry lives and feed hungry minds’.”
He is on several boards, including the Ohio STEM Committee, the Columbus Metropolitan Club, the Ohio Farm Bureau Foundation, the Ohio Supreme Court Moyer Commission, and the Public Policy Committee for the Association of Science and Technology Centers.