Community Empowerment Officer Nina Cooper

Dr. Nina Cooper has a passion for building the capacity of people and communities that is evidenced by improving the quality of life for those around her, promoting social justice, working to include marginalized voices, and redressing inequities for all people, especially underserved communities.  Building capacity and closing the racial wealth gap have been themes woven throughout her servant leadership experiences.

Dr. Nina currently serves Community Empowerment Officer, a deputy director level position, with the City of Albuquerque’s Office of Equity & Inclusion. In that role, she is privileged to lead the Offices of Native American Affairs, Black Community Engagement, Asian/Pacific Islander, Immigrant & Refugees, Office of Civil Rights, and the Office of Financial Empowerment.

Dr. Nina earned her both her master’s and doctorate degrees in Communications from the University of New Mexico, where her academic work focused on intercultural communication, health communication, and health equity using a community-based participatory research framework.  During her time as instructor at both UNM’s Department of Communication and Journalism and College of Population Health, she equipped students to be effective communicators and pursue their chosen professions through an equity lens.  Currently, she works to amplify diverse voices and equips communities to become empowered and impactful.