Founder & Executive Director

Power Words: Prayer, Perseverance, Hope, and Justice

Joanne Suarez is a first-generation Black Dominican and Boston native, serving as ED and Founder of PI. She brings robust knowledge and expertise in racial health equity, complimented by a former career as a Community Health Worker (CHW). In 2020, Joanne developed an ethical framework that centers on ethnocultural beliefs, values, and practices upheld by LatinX communities to promote health equity. Her novel framework has challenged and influenced how ethicists analyze issues concerning race, culture, ethnicity, and social justice.

Before becoming ED, she served as Chief of Staff for Mayor Wu’s Community Engagement Cabinet and co-counsel for quality-of-life related issues impacting Boston residents, where she oversaw a 4-million-dollar budget and four departments responsible for coordinating city services. Before this, she worked across Boston communities, bringing healthcare services and resources directly to the places where people eat, sleep, play, and pray.

Joanne is a part-time Master’s in Divinity candidate at Boston University. She earned a Master of Bioethics from Harvard Medical School and a BS in Counseling Psychology from Johnson & Wales University.

Joanne lives in her hometown of East Boston, with her pup, Bandit, and is actively involved in her community, sitting on multiple boards, advocacy groups, and advisory committees that complement her hobbies, research, and work.