Julia Rivera

Julia Rivera was promoted to Chief External Affairs Officer in August of 2022 after serving as Vice President of External Affairs & Strategic Initiatives spearheading Congreso’s communications, marketing, community and advocacy work. In her new role as a member of Congreso’s Officer team she now oversees the agency’s fundraising and development as well. Julia started her career at Congreso in 2017 as Congreso’s External Affairs Director and during her 5+ years with the organization she has significantly increased Congreso’s digital marketing efforts and social media presence, coordinated the agency’s civic engagement work and major fundraising events, supported program teams across all service areas, and lead new initiatives to cultivate stakeholder engagement.

Julia was honored as a member of AL DÍA’s 40 Under Forty Class of 2022 and in August of 2020, Julia was selected as a Coors Light Líderes Finalist. She was one of twelve emerging Latino leaders across the United States nominated and selected for their civic leadership and who through their words and actions establish noteworthy improvement in the lives of individuals, communities and organizations.

Prior to Congreso, Julia was the Community Relations Manager at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut supporting the President’s Office and coordinating community engagement and partnerships. Julia also graduated from Trinity College summa cum laude with a B.A. in Sociology, Economics, and Urban Studies and an M.A. in Public Policy which she earned while working full-time. Julia has been a lifelong athlete playing field hockey for four years while at Trinity and representing Puerto Rico as a member of the Puerto Rican National Women’s Field Hockey Team since 2008. Originally from Silver Spring, Maryland, Julia is now established in Philadelphia and enjoys taking advantage of all the community events and festivals that the city has to offer.