Joi C. Ridley is the Senior Director of Communications and Marketing for the American Association of University Women.
Joi offers more than two decades of experience leading nonprofit communications operations. The intersection of social justice and journalism has steered her to positions with national non-profits and three prominent advocacy influencers: the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the National Bar Association (NBA) and the United Negro College Fund (UNCF). These experiences required an ability to distill complex topics into concise, yet accurate, issue coverage for multicultural media audiences.
Her daily creed is “This is not just a job, this is my life’s work.” Joi often works without rest, dreams beyond sight and visualizes without restriction. “I consider it both an honor and duty to continue reaching back to empower the next generation of dreamers; my mentors, role models and trailblazers would allow no less,” she adds.
Joi holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from Howard University, a Master’s in Public Administration from Baruch College, and a doctorate in Higher Education Leadership from Maryville University. She has also completed cross-cultural negotiations training at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand and holds a certificate in Women’s Leadership from Yale University. Joi currently lives, learns and loves in the Washington D.C. suburbs of Maryland, yet she enjoys travelling internationally in her spare time.