Shanelle Henry
About Shanelle Henry
Shanelle Henry is the Associate General Counsel at Fannie Mae in the Washington DC-Baltimore Area, with a diverse legal background including significant roles at Microsoft and Nixon Peabody LLP.
Current Position at Fannie Mae
Shanelle Henry currently holds the position of Associate General Counsel at Fannie Mae, based in the Washington DC-Baltimore Area. In her role, she provides legal guidance and oversight to support the company's mission and operations. Her responsibilities include advising on a wide range of legal matters, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements, and mitigating legal risks for the organization.
Past Experience at Microsoft
Shanelle Henry has an extensive history with Microsoft, having held multiple roles within the company. From 2017 to 2024, she served in various capacities, including Corporate Counsel for Cloud & Artificial Intelligence, Principal Corporate Counsel, and finally, as Senior Corporate Counsel for Customer & Partner Solutions. Her tenure at Microsoft involved negotiating over $1 billion in complex deals, with a focus on SAAS agreements, strategic partnerships, and data licensing. She also played a pivotal role in diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, serving on executive leadership teams for the company's Black employee resource groups.
Previous Roles and Legal Experience
Before her time at Microsoft, Shanelle Henry gained diverse legal experience in several roles. She worked as an Associate at Nixon Peabody LLP, specializing in intellectual property counseling, transactions, and litigation from 2011 to 2016. She also served as a Judicial Law Clerk at the Superior Court of the District of Columbia and the DC Commission on Human Rights. Additionally, she briefly held the position of Special Assistant Attorney General at the DC Office of the Attorney General in 2010.
Educational Background
Shanelle Henry is a well-educated professional with a strong academic foundation. She earned her Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center, where she studied from 2006 to 2009. Prior to that, she obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and American Studies from Brandeis University, completing her degree in 2006. Her educational background has provided her with the legal knowledge and analytical skills necessary for her successful career.
Initiatives and Contributions
Shanelle Henry has been actively involved in initiatives aimed at fostering diversity and inclusion. At Microsoft, she helped start a Code Academy designed to deliver programming education to under-served students from kindergarten through college. Through this initiative, she contributed to bridging the digital divide and empowering young learners. She also played a significant role in the executive leadership teams for worldwide and departmental Black employee resource groups, focusing on improving recruiting, retention, and advancement for Black employees at Microsoft.