Ashley Pugh(she/her)

Ashley Pugh is the Director of Communications and External Affairs at the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, one of the most recognized civil rights organizations in the country. She handles everything from social media and website management to graphic design, branding, and press releases — and she'll be the first to tell you that no two days look the same. Her career sits at the intersection of creative media and nonprofit work, and it's proof that you can use skills like design, storytelling, and digital content to make a real difference in your community. Ashley's path to this role was anything but a straight line. She graduated with a degree in Mass Communication from North Carolina Central University, an HBCU, and later earned a master's in Interactive Media from Elon University. But even with two degrees, she struggled to land a job in her field. She got fired from her first media job, spent a year waitressing and working in a mall, and watched her classmates — most of them white — get hired faster and paid more. It took her two extra years just to reach the starting salary her peers walked into right after graduation. What changed everything wasn't a job board or a formal application — it was a conversation at a hair salon. Ashley ran into the CEO of the Urban League while getting her hair done, opened up about her skills and frustrations, and was offered a job on the spot. That moment stuck with her as a reminder of how important it is to talk about what you're capable of, even in unexpected places, and to find workplaces where your contributions are actually valued. Ashley has some real talk for students thinking about this kind of career. You don't need a degree to do what she does — YouTube and self-teaching can get you far — but formal training kept her skills current. More importantly, she says don't try to learn everything at once. Start with the one creative skill that excites you most, get good at it, then build from there. And don't just chase any job — pay attention to the culture of the company, because who's in charge and how they treat people will shape your entire experience. For students of color especially, Ashley's story hits different. She speaks directly about the moments where she felt her race and gender were working against her, from being the only one let go during a probationary period to being underpaid compared to white classmates with the same degree. She didn't sugarcoat it, but she also didn't stop. If you've ever felt like you had to work twice as hard just to get to the starting line, Ashley's journey is for you.