Dr. Alisa Valentin
Senior Director of Technology and Telecommunications Policy at the National Urban League
Dr. Alisa Valentin is the Senior Director of Technology and Telecommunications Policy at the National Urban League where she advocates for inclusive broadband, artificial intelligence, consumer data privacy, and media ownership policies that center and empower Black communities and other communities of color as consumers, workers, and entrepreneurs. Alisa was previously the Special Advisor to FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks where she advised the Commissioner on broadband access and adoption, prison phone justice, and future of work policies. During her time in the Commissioner’s office, she was recognized by Public Knowledge at the 20/20 Visionaries Awards as a future leader in technology policy advocacy. She was also honored as one of the Hispanic Technology and Telecommunications Partnership’s Tech Innovadores in 2021. Prior to her work at the FCC, she was the Communications Justice Fellow at Public Knowledge where she worked on broadband access and adoption, privacy, and artificial intelligence policies. In addition to her work in technology and telecommunications policy, Alisa publishes research on media ownership diversity and digital equity. Her most recent research is featured in Black Women and Public Health: Strategies to Name, Locate, and Change Systems of Power where she co-authored a book chapter titled “Rural Black Maternal Health in the Age of Digital Deserts.” Alisa is also an adjunct professor at Norfolk State University where she teaches media law and policy courses to undergraduate and graduate students. She has also taught communications and women’s studies courses at Howard University, Trinity Washington University, Northern Virginia Community College, and Montgomery College. Alisa received a Ph.D. in Communications from Howard University, an M.S. in Journalism from Northwestern University, and a B.S. in Telecommunications from the University of Florida.