Michelle A. Diaz, MPA (she/her/ella) is the Senior Director of Transformational Technical Assistance, where she provides support, leadership, and direction for the Reducing Risk for Girls in the Juvenile Justice System Training and Technical Assistance project at Justice + Joy National Collaborative by managing their cooperative agreement, providing national technical assistance to more than 21 states plus the District of Columbia focusing on girls in or at risk of engagement with the youth legal system in partnership with the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) within the office of Department of Justice (DOJ).
In addition, she is the inaugural Executive Director of Canary Impact (previously known as Canary Impact Fund or CIF). Ms. Diaz oversees the strategic direction and daily operations, focusing on sustainability, policy and program development, financial management, and team leadership. She ensures that the organization achieves its mission and goals.
Ms. Diaz is the Past Immediate National Chairwoman at the Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ) and Secretary for the Community Connections for Youth (CCFY) Board of Directors. In 2016, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo appointed Ms. Diaz to the New York State Juvenile Justice Advisory Group (NYS JJAG). The former New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OFCS) commissioner, Sheila J. Poole, appointed Ms. Diaz to serve as a board member at the Ombudsman (OOTO) office, where they help protect the legal rights of youth who reside at secure and nonsecure juvenile facilities throughout the state. More recently, Ms. Diaz joined the Salzburg Global Seminar as a fellow at their Youth Violence and Safety program and obtained her Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) and Public Policy Administration (PPA) from John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
