Jessica Friedrichs serves as IF’s Director of Education. She also serves as a Fellow.
Jes is a social worker and educator committed to connecting people from all walks of life to create the world we all want to live in. Prior to joining the IF team, she was Assistant Professor and Director of Field Education in the Bachelor’s of Social Work Program at Carlow University in Pittsburgh. In higher education, she taught nearly 20 different courses over more than fifteen years, focusing on incorporating community engagement, cultural humility, and cultivating big picture, critical thinking skills in her students. When IF launched the Collaborative Discussion Project Toolkit, she contributed activities and regularly served as a guest trainer for Collaborative Discussion Coach workshops.
The joy of her work has been the privilege of working with diverse students from a wide range of backgrounds, including age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, political beliefs, and more, many of whom were parents and first-generation college students. One of the highlights of her career was being selected by her students for the university-wide Award for Excellence in Teaching.
Jes is committed to working across cultures and has facilitated global community-based learning in Bolivia, Tanzania, Northern Ireland, Jamaica, the Navajo Nation, and, most recently, Honduras. The lessons learned from those experiences were captured in her co-authored book, Community-Based Global Learning: The Theory and Practice of Ethical Engagement at Home and Abroad. She serves on the board for the Alliance for Refugee Youth Support and Education (ARYSE) and regularly volunteers to support immigrants and women.
Prior to her role in higher education, she worked in non-profit leadership development, refugee resettlement, and in the philanthropic sector in Pittsburgh. She holds a Master’s in Social Work (MSW) and a Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) from the University of Pittsburgh. She and her family like to read, swim, travel, play board games, and have lively debates where she can practice all her skills in collaborative discussion.
