Maya Smith

Maya comes from a family of educators, who taught her early on the value of public service and imagining a better future for the community. That grounding shapes her work as a Research and Communications Associate at The Workers Lab, where she collaborates with participant-researchers, partner organizations, and the TWL team to advance participatory research and spread our message to the world. Before TWL, she supported research and program work at the Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program, worked as a Retail Assistant at Relume, a woman-owned craft shop in Washington, D.C., and served as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in Brazil. As a queer Black and Latina woman, she's experienced firsthand how our economic system fails people from marginalized communities, and she's committed to helping build one that doesn't. She holds a B.A. in Economics from Harvard College. Outside of work, she's usually crafting, reading, or annoying her cat and dog.