Adriana Dawson serves as assistant dean of Professional Education & Employer Outreach for Roger Williams University’s School of Continuing Studies in Providence. Prior, Dawson was first female appointed state director for Rhode Island Small Business Development Center. During her 12-year tenure, Dawson led Rhode Island’s first Latino Business Expo. Dawson is on Board of Directors for United Way of Rhode Island, vice chair of Providence Economic Development Advisory Committee, member on Latino Policy Institute Advisory Board at Roger Williams University, and founding member of Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England’s Hispanic Advisory Board. She was also appointed by Governor Raimondo to RI Commission on Women. Dawson holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies from Northeastern University and a Master of Arts in Management & Organizational Communications from Emerson College.
photo by Agapao Productions
At my core, I am a community agent. For as long as I can remember, my personal and professional journey has led me on a path to assist and advocate for those most vulnerable and whose voices are being silenced. Fortunately, for the past 17 years, my career has allowed me to help families and strengthen communities with a particular focus on economic empowerment and self-sufficiency.
I am now part of a team at Roger Williams University’s School of Continuing Studies, led by Dean Jamie Scurry, which carries out this amazing work on a daily basis. We don’t see ourselves just touching a student or program participant, we touch and transform families, neighborhoods, and communities. This work is done in collaboration with other community partners that share in the spirit of that mission.
In my current role overseeing the School of Continuing Studies Center for Workforce & Professional Development Career (CWPD), I support un/under employed individuals connect with our accelerated career pathway programs that prepares them for in demand industry opportunities and long term career success. There’s Pivot the Hustle Program, where we and a cadre of dedicated volunteers support men and women within 18 months of release with self-discovery and soft skill job readiness training that will aid in their successful transition. We also work very closely with municipalities to help address their unique needs by developing customized programs for often times, their most vulnerable communities. This work is all carried out in a way that honors and values the individual, family, and culture.
Outside of my work environment, I’ve also committed to sitting on a number of boards and commissions that allow me to extend my efforts in this area. As a Commissioner on the Rhode Island Commission on Women and Girls, we’re currently focused on addressing the wage inequity in Rhode Island. My role on the United Way of RI Board enables me to support an organization investing in programs and initiatives transforming communities, and my involvement with the Girls Scouts of Southeastern New England is helping them connect with a new and traditionally underserved membership demographic for GSSNE through their recently launched Hispanic Initiative.
In essence, helping families and lifting communities is in my DNA and I have the honor to assist people on a daily basis. I, myself, was a participant in many youth enrichment programs meant to assist teens from urban communities, particularly young women of color. I am also fortunate to come from a family of community servants and strong women! I now have a responsibility to do what I can to ensure that others have access, to help my daughter and other young girls of color feel like anything is possible, and that being bicultural/bilingual are assets not deficiencies.
My journey isn’t over, in many ways, it’s just beginning. There’s a lot more work to be done and I’m ready!
