Alicia Cook is thrilled to join the team at AGMA as its Director of Communications. In her new role, Cook will be responsible for AGMA's overall communications strategy, including the magazine, branding, public relations, web presence, and social media, working collaboratively with many members of the AGMA community as well as the Board of Governors.
“Alicia has established herself as a prolific writer and superb creative professional. She brings to this position a wealth of experience in elevating communication strategies. AGMA is experiencing a period of exciting growth and achievement. Alicia is the ideal choice to engage with our members and external community to enhance brand awareness and AGMA’s growing national reputation,” said Donald P. Cavanaugh, CFO.
Cook has devoted the first decade-plus of her career to working in higher education, most recently as Director of Institutional Communications and Campaign Marketing at Bloomfield College. During her four-year tenure at Bloomfield College, she was responsible for brainstorming, drafting, implementing, and managing communication efforts for the Institution. These efforts included the creation of four monthly newsletters; trustee, alumni, student, faculty/staff, and donor spotlight stories; invites, signage, and brochures; photography; event recaps; press releases; and web stories. She was also the go-to writer for speeches and the lead for video creation. No stranger to multitasking, she seamlessly managed on-camera/in-person interviews and press queries.
Most notably, she elevated the overall quality of the College's magazine, On The Green, taking the magazine from 24 pages to 38 pages. Under her leadership, and as the sole author, the magazine won three awards in the industry-respected MarCom awards, a first for the College.
In addition, Cook is an established poet and is represented by Andrews McMeel Publishing. Her bestselling book of poetry, "Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately" was a finalist in the 2016 Goodreads Choice Awards, and her follow up, "I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip" was released in 2018. She recently finalized her third book deal.
A firm believer in helping others, she uses her growing platform and skillset to advocate for families affected by drug addiction. An essayist and speaker, her activism to fight the opioid epidemic has garnered a worldwide readership and her very own episode on the Emmy-nominated PBS series "Here's the Story."
She was the recipient of 2017's "Everyday Hero" award from NJTV and 2018's "Women with Voices" award from the Women with Voices Foundation. She was named a 2019 "Healthcare Hero" finalist by NJBiz. Her songwriting has been recognized by American Songwriter Magazine (4x honorable mention), Music City Song Star (semi-finalist), and the American Songwriting Awards (winner).
Cook comes from a union family of Newark Firefighters and is a graduate of Georgian Court University, where she earned a BA in English Literature and Communications. She received her MBA from Saint Peter's University. She is a proud resident of Newark, New Jersey.