Dr. Lisa M. Black, is Director, Cultural Belonging & Social Ethos for the American Society of Civil Engineers. In 2016, Black joined the staff of ASCE the nation’s oldest engineering society, representing more than 150,000 members. In her role as Director of Cultural Belonging & Social Ethos, she is responsible for developing, monitoring, and evaluating policies, programs, activities, and products aimed at advancing inclusion of people representing underrepresented identities in the profession. Through her work with ASCE’s board level committee, Members of Society Advancing an Inclusive Culture (MOSAIC), she provides leadership in all matters of diversity, equity and inclusion within the civil engineering community and implements policies and programs designed to advance awareness and recognition of the civil engineering profession, with a special emphasis on promoting civil engineering as an inclusive discipline.
Prior to joining ASCE, Black acquired nearly 20 years of experience in social work, policy, and leading strategic planning initiatives focused on diversity, equity and inclusion. These experiences encompassed administrative leadership, research, community engagement and project management that span pre-kindergarten through career workforce. In the preK-12 public education sector, she served as Special Assistant to the Superintendent for Race and Equity in Madison Wisconsin and held education leadership licenses in Wisconsin and Virginia.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from North Carolina State University and both graduate degrees, a Master of Science in Social Work and Ph.D. in Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Black enjoys spending time with her husband, brother Renny, their four adult children and chocolate lab, Odie.
