DEANNA L. HAYDEN
Thurgood Marshall College Fund
Washington,DC
Work Preference
Job Search Status:
Open to work
Desired Job Title
Senior Program ManagerAssociate Director of ProgramsAssociate Director of Strategic Initiatives
Work Type
Full TimeConsulting
Location Preference
HybridRemoteOn-Site
Location:
Washington, DC
Open to relocation:
Yes
Minimum Desired Compensation
$98000/yr
Important To Me
Career advancementWork-life balanceCompany CulturePersonal development programs
8
years of professional experience
1
Certification
9
years of post-secondary education
Project management and strategic operations professional with a PhD in Communication, Culture, and Media Studies and nearly a decade of experience across higher education, federal government, and the nonprofit sector. Skilled in building community partnerships, managing grant-funded programs end to end, and designing engagement initiatives that support student success, cultural education, and public engagement. Proven record of growing programs (80% expansion of a student internship pipeline), stewarding an $88M national campaign, and translating stakeholder relationships into sustained funding and institutional impact.
Work History
Manager of Research and Program Development
1 Year 10 Months- Plan and lead executive convenings, fellowships, and leadership programming, including the signature Faculty Research Seminar, which achieved a 93 Net Promoter Score and strengthened engagement among campus stakeholders.
- Oversee fiscal management and grant administration for externally funded initiatives, including budget oversight, financial reporting, and MOU compliance with federal, philanthropic, and public partners.
- Develop and lead programmatic initiatives in partnership with organizations such as NSF, Gallup, and the MacArthur Foundation, translating partner priorities and funding objectives into programs that strengthen institutional capacity and advance organizational goals.
- Lead qualitative program evaluation across multiple initiatives, designing evaluation approaches, developing data collection tools, analyzing participant and stakeholder feedback, and translating findings into actionable recommendations for program improvement and future strategy.
- Oversee editorial direction, data collection, and dissemination of signature impact reports and research publications, contributing to the release of seven publications since 2025.
- Administer leadership training and advise institutions on strategic programs that advance research capacity, talent retention, organizational effectiveness, and programmatic visibility.
- Manage relationships across foundations, funders, and institutional partners to sustain programming, support partnership development, and strengthen multi-year grant retention.
- Advise students and campus partners on workforce development and career-readiness programming, expanding internship participation by 80% and strengthening recruitment pipelines.
Instructor and Curriculum Specialist
3 Years 4 Months- Planned and executed career-focused workshops, experiential learning opportunities, and student engagement programming alongside project lead Nikole Hannah-Jones.
- Designed and delivered interdisciplinary integrating journalism, media, and career-focused experiential learning; co-led seven undergraduate courses serving 230+ students.
- Developed hybrid curriculum and course sequences for a multi-institutional consortium, coordinating academic content, instructional delivery, and implementation across participating institutions.
- Led project management for 1619: The College Edition, coordinating timelines, deliverables, student participation, production activities, and cross-functional stakeholders in collaboration with project leadership and external partners.
- Coordinated a partnership with Spotify to launch a student podcast course and produce 1619: The College Edition podcast.
- Developed scripts, talking points, briefing materials, and other communications for program events and external engagements, and represented the Center as a delegate at select convenings and partner-facing activities.
- Coordinated guest speakers and nationally recognized thought leaders across courses and programs, managing outreach, scheduling, preparation, and integration of speakers into the curriculum and student experience.
- Built and managed partnerships across seven colleges to support institutional collaboration, coordinate shared programming, and expand the reach and visibility of higher-education initiatives.
Communications Brand Fellow
1 Year 10 Months- Managed stakeholder engagement and fundraising documentation for an $88M national campaign, supporting donor communications and advancement operations.
- Coordinated grant funding compliance, reporting, and documentation across 11 regions, ensuring adherence to federal requirements and award conditions.
- Built reporting tools and data-tracking systems to support reconciliation reporting and institutional records management.
- Audited brand and intellectual property usage and conducted federal compliance reviews of major donor contributions.
Archival Consultant
3 Years 4 Months- Served as liaison between university stakeholders and archival repositories to facilitate retrieval and review of priority materials from signature collections.
- Advised on archival research strategy, collection management, and documentation approaches to support preservation and scholarly objectives.
Data Analyst
1 Year 6 Months- Led market research and evaluation with 130 participants to inform public service announcements, product safety messaging, and outreach strategy for priority populations.
- Analyzed behavioral and demographic data and produced reports with actionable insights that informed FDA advisories, outreach, and media strategy.
Public Relations Associate
2 Years 4 Months- Supported execution of public affairs campaigns for private- and public-sector clients, including media outreach and stakeholder coordination.
- Conducted real-time media monitoring and analysis, enabling timely client response to reputational risk.
- Identified and secured strategic partnerships that expanded campaign reach and visibility across target audiences.
Program Associate
2 Years 2 Months- Served as program liaison, streamlining communications and resolving student and policy inquiries; coordinated graduate office orientations and workshops.
- Implemented a structured digital archiving and records-management system, improving data integrity and compliance for 300+ institutional records.
Education
PhD - Communication, Culture, and Media Studies
Master of Arts - Media and Strategic Communication
Bachelor of Arts - Womens Studies
Skills
Project & Operations Management
Community & Stakeholder Partnerships
Budget Management
Grant & Compliance Management
Advancement & Donor Engagement
Curriculum & Program Development
Student Success Initiatives
Impact Reporting & Data Visualization (Power BI
Tableau)
Salesforce
Intacct Sage
Qualitative Analysis and Evaluation
Certification
- Federal Public Lands Corps (PLC) Member, Non-Competitive Eligibility
- CITI Social-Behavioral-Educational (SBE) Comprehensive Certification
- CITI Physical Science, Humanities, and Administrators Responsible Conduct of Research Certifications
- Project Management Professional (Certification) in progress
Affiliations
- Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH)
- Eastern Communication Association
- National Communication Association (NCA)
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
● Brown, M.C., Hill, R., Tague, J., Hayden, D., Rzucidlo, K. & Lasenby, D. (2026). Proof of Promise: The Lasting Value and Impact of an HBCU Education. Washington, DC: Dr. N. Joyce Payne Research Center, Thurgood Marshall College Fund.
● Brown, M.C., Shaw, C., Tague, J., Kim, S., Hill, R., Henrie, A., Rzucidlo, K., Majied, I., Hayden, D., Malone, A., Lasenby, D., Collins, I., & Bryant, G. (2026). Ready to Scale, Poised to Lead: Assessing AI Readiness at Our Nation’s HBCUs. Washington, DC: Dr. N. Joyce Payne Research Center, Thurgood Marshall College Fund.
● Hill, R., Tague, J., Brown, M.C., Hayden, D., Rzucidlo, K., & Lasenby, D. (2026). Advancing America’s Research Enterprise: A National Assessment of Research Capacity and Future Readiness at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Washington, DC: Dr. N. Joyce Payne Research Center, Thurgood Marshall College Fund.
● Brown, M. C., Hill, R., Tague, J., Hayden, D., & Lasenby, D. (2025). The American Dividend: Public HBCUs Powering National Strength and Opportunity. Dr. N. Joyce Payne Research Center, Thurgood Marshall College Fund.
● Brown, M. C., Hill, R., Tague, J., Hayden, D., & Lasenby, D. (2025). Stewarding the Legacy: A National Strategy for Building Resilient HBCU Presidential Leadership. Dr. N. Joyce Payne Research Center, Thurgood Marshall College Fund.
● Powell, A., Westrick, N., & Hayden, D. (2025). The Servant Mammy: Reading Lovecraft Country's Hippolyta Freeman Circumvents Through Servant Leadership Approach. Lexington Books.
● Hayden, D. (2025). Twitter reactions to the United States 2022 SCOTUS judiciary committee hearing [Video]. Sage Knowledge.
ADDITIONAL TEACHING EXPERIENCE
- Writing in the Disciplines (WID) Teaching Assistant George Washington University
- Introduction to Persuasive Speech Writing (Spring 2021); Introduction to Journalism (Spring 2021)
- Teaching Assistant Howard University
- Special Topics in Communication: The 1619 Project (Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2024, Spring 2025)
- Narrative Journalism in Podcasting (Fall 2023); Introduction to Investigative Journalism (Fall 2024)
Volunteer Experience
- Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Member, Federal City Alumnae Chapter, Washington, DC, 2018-04, Present, Mentor teenage women through the Delta GEMS program, supporting academic achievement, leadership development, and college/career readiness., Plan and implement community engagement initiatives through the Community Day Committee, advancing education, civic engagement, and economic empowerment in Southeast Washington, DC., Coordinate outreach with residents, community organizations, and business owners to expand access to educational, financial, and health-based resources.
- Mississippi Cultural Crossroads, Outreach Specialist, Port Gibson, MS, 2019-01, Present, Led strategic program design to align regional initiatives with organizational priorities, improving operational efficiency and community impact., Secured a Mississippi Humanities Council grant to launch a hybrid public program on media representation and civic engagement., Developed standardized evaluation frameworks and grant reporting protocols to improve compliance and streamline funding documentation., Expanded program reach through digital outreach and strategic partnerships with community organizations and collegiate institutions., Coordinated the development of summer enrichment programs for students in partnership with higher education institutions and county school systems, aligning programming with community needs and educational priorities.
Timeline
Manager of Research and Program Development
Thurgood Marshall College Fund
12.2024 - CurrentRead More
Data Analyst
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
05.2023 - 11.2024Read More
Communications Brand Fellow
U.S. National Park Service, Office of Partnerships and Philanthropic Stewardship
02.2023 - 12.2024Read More
Instructor and Curriculum Specialist
Howard University, Center for Journalism and Democracy
01.2022 - 05.2025Read More
Archival Consultant
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
01.2022 - 05.2025Read More
Howard University, Cathy Hughes School of Communication
PhD from Communication, Culture, and Media Studies
08.2021 - 04.2025Read More
George Washington University
Master of Arts from Media and Strategic Communication
08.2019 - 04.2021Read More
Program Associate
George Washington University
06.2019 - 08.2021Read More
Public Relations Associate
Finn Partners
01.2019 - 05.2021Read More
Spelman College
Bachelor of Arts from Womens Studies
08.2015 - 05.2019Read More