Our Leadership

Chioma Chukwu

Executive Director

Chioma Chukwu serves as Executive Director of American Oversight, where she sets the organization’s vision and strategic direction, leading efforts to expose corruption, enforce transparency, and hold government actors accountable. She previously served as Deputy Executive Director starting in July 2023. Before joining American Oversight, Chukwu was General Counsel for the House Committee on Oversight and Reform and an advisor to the late Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, advancing the committee’s oversight and investigative strategy.

Chukwu brings extensive experience in civil rights enforcement and government accountability. She served as a senior trial attorney at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, where she litigated individual and systemic employment discrimination cases. Earlier, at the California Civil Rights Department, she handled employment, housing, and public accommodation discrimination matters, as well as hate-violence cases, in both state and federal courts. She also litigated complex employment matters at Sanford Heisler LLP, a national public interest law firm, and represented whistleblowers at the National Whistleblower Center.

Chukwu holds a B.A. from the University of California, Riverside; a master’s degree in public administration from George Mason University; and a J.D. from the University of Virginia.

Liz Hempowicz

Deputy Executive Director

As Deputy Executive Director, Liz Hempowicz advises the Executive Director on organizational priorities and strategy, shaping both operational decisions and long-term programmatic direction. A nationally recognized leader in government transparency and accountability, Hempowicz serves as a key spokesperson to stakeholders and external audiences and is a member of the federal FOIA Advisory Committee.

Before joining American Oversight, she was Vice President for Policy and Government Affairs at the Project On Government Oversight, where she successfully advanced anti-corruption reforms for a decade. Hempowicz secured improvements to the Freedom of Information Act, expanded access to information for inspectors general, and protected core checks on executive authority. In 2024 and 2025, Washingtonian magazine named her one of the 500 most influential people shaping public policy. 

Hempowicz holds a B.A. from the University of Bridgeport and a J.D. from American University’s Washington College of Law. 

Peter Kenny

Vice President of Litigation and Investigations 

Peter Kenny, Vice President of Litigation and Investigations, leads oversight and legal strategies for American Oversight, overseeing a team of litigators and investigators focused on driving impact.

Kenny brings more than a decade of oversight and investigative experience from the Senate, House of Representatives, and Executive Branch. Prior to joining American Oversight, he served as Special Assistant to the President and Director of Oversight at the White House. He also spent more than ten years on Capitol Hill, including as Chief Counsel for the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, where he managed teams of attorneys and investigators across the committee’s broad jurisdiction.

During his tenure on the House Oversight Committee, Kenny helped lead high-profile investigations into government corruption and national security failures during the first Trump administration. He also helped manage the committee’s litigation portfolio, including the landmark Supreme Court separation-of-powers case Trump v. Mazars, and consistently advanced efforts to strengthen government transparency. 

Kenny earned a B.A. from the University of Michigan, a J.D. from the University of Wisconsin, and a M.A. in Law and Diplomacy from Tufts University.

Krista Boyd

General Counsel and Vice President of Strategy 

Krista Boyd, General Counsel and Vice President of Strategy for American Oversight, leads the organization’s risk mitigation, identification of emerging issues, and strategic engagement. 

Boyd is an experienced oversight and accountability leader. She served as the presidentially appointed, Senate-confirmed Inspector General of the Office of Personnel Management. In that role, she conducted oversight of over $1 trillion and led audits and investigations that uncovered fraud, waste, and abuse and identified tens of millions of dollars in potential savings.

Previously, Boyd served as Chief Counsel for Oversight and Policy for the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. She conducted high-profile investigations and advanced reforms in transparency, ethics, and whistleblower protections. She led efforts to enact the FOIA Improvement Act, the Inspector General Empowerment Act, and the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, as well as  the creation of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee.

Boyd earned a B.S. from Florida State University and a J.D. from the Emory University School of Law.

Ron Fein

Chief Counsel

As Chief Counsel at American Oversight, Ron Fein leads American Oversight’s legal strategy by using federal and state transparency and accountability laws to expose and challenge government misconduct. 

Fein joined American Oversight from Free Speech For People, where he served for a decade as Legal Director, litigating cases and advocating in legislatures around the country about government accountability, campaign finance, election protection, and protection of constitutional democracy. Prior to that, he served as Assistant Regional Counsel in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s New England office, where he received the EPA’s National Gold Medal for Exceptional Service. Fein also clerked for Judge Kermit Lipez of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and Judge Douglas Woodlock of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. 

Fein earned a B.A., summa cum laude, from Harvard College and J.D. from Stanford Law School, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif.

Karl Frisch

Director, Strategic Communications and Media Relations

Karl Frisch is the Director of Strategic Communications and Media Relations at American Oversight and leads the organization’s communications strategy, including media outreach and engagements.

Frisch is an accomplished nonprofit executive and communications specialist with a reputation for impactful work on consumer financial protection, media fairness, and government ethics. As Executive Director of the consumer watchdog Allied Progress, he led efforts to protect Americans targeted by predatory lenders, deceptive student loan servicers, and other financial scammers. Earlier in his career, he served in senior communications roles with the U.S. House Committee on Rules, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and Media Matters for America. 

Frisch earned his bachelor’s degree with highest distinction from the University of Virginia.

Kira Bascombe

Director, People and Operations

Kira Bascombe, Director of People and Operations, helps lead American Oversight’s efforts to carry out a commitment to a thriving workforce and ensure alignment with operational goals.

Bascombe is an accomplished human resources leader with a decade of experience, specializing in strategic HR initiatives, compliance, and people management. She previously served as People Operations Director at Vytyl Health Management, a youth-focused behavioral health technology company, where she oversaw multi-state HR strategy, talent management, and employee engagement. Prior to that, she was Human Resources Manager/HR Business Partner at Empowered Diagnostics, leading human resources in a fast-paced manufacturing environment and navigating pandemic-related workforce challenges. Earlier in her career, Bascombe worked at Family Central, Inc., supporting employee programs in multiple capacities. 

Bascombe is the coauthor of the Amazon Best Seller, Daughters on the Journey: A Tribute to Our Mothers.

Bascombe has a B.A. from Howard University and a M.A. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology. She also holds certifications as a Senior Professional in Human Resources and SHRM Certified Professional.