Greg Honan '14 came to Elon planning to study music, but a first-year political science course sparked a passion for politics and writing that shaped his entire career. He now serves as deputy chief of communications for the City of Boston and credits the mentors and community he found at Elon for making it all possible.
With a promising new start at Elon University, Greg Honan ’14 wanted to learn to become a better writer and challenge his current skill set. Originally from outside of Boston, Massachusetts, Honan initially planned to study music. However, after attending a first-year political science course, he understood that the impact of learning politics combined with his love for writing, gave him the power to shape history.
“Part of the reason I picked Elon is that I had spent my whole life in Massachusetts,” Honan said. “I was really excited to go somewhere new, meet new people, build new bridges, and most importantly, I was excited to be a part of the Elon community.”
Working alongside his Elon College Fellow mentor, Laura Roselle, former professor of political science and policy studies, Honan completed his application for the Lumen Prize. His focus was to combine his passion for writing and knowledge of political science to explore how presidents use storytelling to shape policy outcomes.
“I remember sitting in her office, and we were talking through my project. I was there for an hour and a half, and at some point, I stopped and said to her, ‘This is really fun, I really like this.’” Honan said. “For me, that was the moment that it clicked that I wanted to work in politics. I really enjoy thinking, writing and reading about politics. It certainly was the moment that sparked my intellectual curiosity in politics as a career.”
Both a Lumen Scholar and an Elon College Fellow scholarship recipient, Honan built a successful start in his career at Elon. He studied abroad in London for Winter Term and did a semester at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. He held leadership positions in Elon’s Model UN team and was also the president of the former politics forum club.
Most notably, he was an intern in the Office of the President for former President Leo Lambert. As an executive intern in the president’s office, he worked closely with Lambert and Jeff Stein, who, at the time, was chief of staff to the president.
“They had me working on communications. This was one of the first jobs I had where I was doing communications for a senior leader. In many ways, now, looking back, that was one of those moments where I was doing the career path that I wanted,” Honan said.
This experience led him to advance his career and intern for David Gergen, who was a professor at Harvard Kennedy School and a CNN Senior Political Analyst.
“Most importantly, David Gergen was from North Carolina and was a huge Elon fan. He was also the chair of the board for Elon Law. I had met him through a few different Elon and Massachusetts connections. I ended up interning for him for two summers, and when I graduated, he hired me full-time, where I worked for him for three years,” explained Honan.
Honan worked alongside Gergen full-time during the 2016 election cycle. His work included booking Gergen’s television hits, writing talking points, doing research and writing memos for Gergen.
“Working with him and being around him made me realize, not only did I like this work broadly as a career, but I wanted to be someone who was actually in these jobs that he had done,” Honan said. “I wanted to serve in government, I wanted to work on campaigns, and work for people that I cared about and believed in.”
Honan finished his two-year master’s in public policy program at Harvard Kennedy School, graduating in 2020, during the first two months of COVID-19.
“When I graduated, I told everyone I knew who was working on the campaign for then-Vice President Joe Biden, that I wanted to help and was willing to do anything and go anywhere,” he said.
This drive to work for what he believes in led him to work on the Democratic Convention in Wilmington, Delaware.
“I was on the team that worked to help run COVID-19 testing centers, which at the time was a completely new thing. It allowed me to help with the convention, meet incredible people, and help build the momentum towards Joe Biden’s ultimately successful election in November 2020,” he said.
Honan then moved to Washington and spent two years as the Communications Director for a nonprofit called ‘With Honor’, which works to advance veterans’ affairs issues in Congress.
It was around the time of the midterm elections in 2022 when he suddenly got a call to come into the White House and continue his work on COVID-19 operations. This was a perfect way for Honan to get his foot in the door and start working toward his dream position in the White House.
His hard work in COVID-19 operations eventually earned him a spot on the White House’s communications team, which Honan stated was “what I had always dreamed of and doing what I wanted to do when I attended Elon.”
During the last year of the administration, Honan was the chief of staff to the White House communications director, the director of message planning and special assistant to the president.
“In those roles, I got to work with an incredible team of people who were supporting the president’s communications, and I had the job of a lifetime. If you had asked me what I wanted to do at Elon, it would have been that job,” he expressed.
When reflecting on what choices he made at Elon that helped him get where he is today, Honan said, “At Elon, I was surrounded by professors, staff and classmates who challenged me and made me smarter. They had my back and helped me figure out how to pursue the career and the life that I wanted. I just think back, and I’m so grateful for people like Laura Roselle and Heidi Frontani.”
After his successes at the White House, Honan returned home to Boston to fill the role of deputy chief of communications for the City of Boston.
“Everyone said to me, Mayor Michelle Wu is an incredible person to work for, and working for a mayor in a place that you love is one of the most rewarding jobs you could have in politics. Both of those things are 100% true,” he said. “It is so special to live in the city of Boston and get to work on the issues that the people on my street, the people in my neighborhood and the people I take the train with every day really care about, and it impacts their lives. One of the coolest things about local government is that you’re working on problems that can immediately change people’s lives.”
This tangible and fulfilling work Honan is doing for his city has led him to extend a helping hand to others interested in politics as a career.
“I have incredible mentors who helped me get here. I am trying to spend as much time as I can mentoring other people. Politics is a tough business to get into, and you can’t just apply on LinkedIn, so I’ve helped people figure out how to get in the door because that’s what many good people did for me,” he said. “I would not have any of the career success I’ve had without the people at Elon. To me, it feels like it’s my duty to pay it forward and continue that legacy.”
That sense of duty keeps Elon close to his heart no matter where his career takes him. Every Elon student he mentors, every alum he runs into in the professional world, pulls him right back.
“I’m immediately brought back, and I remember why it was so special and why the people who went there are so special,” said Honan.
The excitement, the community, the sense of purpose he first felt walking through the bricks and under the oaks, never went away. It grew into something bigger, something he now carries with him everywhere he goes, and something he’s committed to passing on.