Joy Pugh, Ed.D., is Assistant Vice Provost for Enrollment and Executive Director of Virginia College Advising Corps (VCAC), a statewide postsecondary access program. VCAC is a data-driven, evidence-based program delivering near-peer mentoring and advising to students from low-income and underrepresented backgrounds in Virginia’s public high schools.
Since joining VCAC in 2012, Joy led efforts to scale the organization and increase impact across the commonwealth, building from 13 full-time advisers to 60, and from serving 2,000 seniors to over 11,000 annually. Joy has worked closely on access efforts with multiple Governors' administrations including initiating and co-leading a statewide virtual FAFSA project that narrowed the FAFSA completion gap for Title 1 schools by 9.4%.
Prior to VCAC Joy served as an Assistant Dean of Students and as LGBTQ Coordinator at UVA. She is past president of Virginia College Access Network (VirginiaCAN) and past vice-president of Piedmont Housing Alliance. Joy earned a B.A. from UNC-Charlotte, M.Ed. from James Madison University, and a doctorate from Vanderbilt University. Joy lives in Charlottesville with her wife Bizz, enjoys running, hiking, and cycling, and is continuously inspired by the work of the college advisers.