Nia K. Evans has been appointed executive director of the NAACP Boston Branch. She is the first executive director and paid staffer since Attorney Thomas Atkins held the role of executive secretary for the Boston Branch in the late 1960s, before going on to be elected Boston NAACP President in December 1974, the height of desegregation in Boston.
With Evans’ appointment, the Boston NAACP is responding to awarding-winning growth in annual and lifetime memberships, an increase in younger members and sustained issues that continue to require civil rights advocacy.
Evans will manage the organization’s office space in Washington Park Mall; oversee the organization’s operations including creating and improving administrative capacity and recruiting and developing organizational leaders; develop external and internal communications strategies, guide strategic planning, major programming, initiatives, collaborations/partnerships and fundraising; and provide and develop additional public representation of the organization.
Evans, a native of Gardena, California, comes to the position after previously volunteering, and serving in the roles as vice-chair of education and chair of the economic development committees. She has a B.S. in industrial and labor relations from Cornell University and a master of arts in education leadership, with a course of study in leadership, policy, and politics from Teachers College at Columbia University. She also studied abroad at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, where she focused on international labor relations.
Personally and professionally, Evans is an advocate for children, education and communities. Throughout her educational and work experiences, Evans has come to understand that positive reform in any area is largely affected by the myriad issues that communities face. To acquire breadth and depth of understanding these issues, Evans has sought experiences that are diverse. She has extensive experience as a policy analyst, researcher, project and production manager and educator.
