Jennifer R. Farmer

Jennifer R. Farmer is an author and leading professional in communications strategy. She has made her mark in social justice movements for close to 15 years having held senior leadership positions with Advancement Project, the Service Employees International Union, SEIU District 1199 (WKO) and in the administration of former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland. She currently serves as managing director for communications director for PICO National Network, a network of more than 45 faith based groups in 150 U.S. cities and towns. Among her credits is work with the Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, president of the North CarolinaState Conference of the NAACP, and architect of the Forward Together Moral Movement. She led communications and outreach work in support of the weekly Moral Monday protests he organized in Raleigh, NC beginning in April 2013. She also publicized the NC NAACP’s legal challenge to North Carolina’s 2013 restrictive voting measure, H.B. 589, which was overturned in July 2016.Farmer’s understanding of the intersection of policy, advocacy and media has helped establish the groups she’s worked with as leading voices in social justice and contemporary civil rights. She promoted the work of these organizations — Padres y Jovenes Unidos, NC NAACP, Advancement Project, Tenants and Workers United, SEIU District 1199, etc. — with news stories and TV segments in leading print, digital and broadcast media outlets including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Politico, Al Jazeera America, MSNBC, Real Time with Bill Maher, and The Rachel Maddow Show. She is the author of Extraordinary PR, Ordinary Budget (Berrett-Koehler Publishers) which will be published June 2017, and is presently available for pre-orders via Amazon.com. Farmer has a range of experiences spearheading national and state campaigns to affect social change. She’s held positions in the public and non-profit sectors, including roles within the Ohio Department of Transportation, the Ohio Senate Democratic Caucus and the Center for Progressive Leadership where she trained and coached leaders seeking elected office. While employed as an agency lobbyist for Gov. Ted Strickland, Farmer brokered the release of $25 million dollars to enable feasibility research on a high-speed rail project connecting major Ohio cities such as Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. A transformative leader, Farmer serves on the national advisory board for the National Center for State Courts’ Community Engagement in the State Courts initiative, a project designed to promote racial and ethnic fairness in the courts. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and Political Science from the University of Rochester.