Rebekah Spicuglia is the Program Director at Family Story, a think tank founded to recognize, validate, and protect the many ways individuals form and re-form families. Rebekah has worked in film, public relations, and strategic communications for 15 years, on a wide range of social justice issues that impact people of color, women, and LGBTQ communities.

As Program Director at Family Story, Rebekah is responsible for strategic planning, program development, financial management, communications, operations, and fundraising. Rebekah served as the Director of Strategic Communications & Public Engagement at Race Forward, its daily news site Colorlines, and biennial conference Facing Race, responsible for marketing, community engagement, narrative shift, and revenue-generation. Notable work included the Drop the I-Word campaign, and the 2011 research report Shattered Families, on the 5,000+ children placed in foster care each year because their parents have been detained or deported. Prior to Race Forward, Rebekah was the Media & Program Director at Women’s Media Center; Media Field Strategy Fellow at GLAAD; and consultant for non-profit and creative projects.

Rebekah is also a writer and bereaved mother. After Rebekah publicly shared her experience of being a noncustodial mom in 2008, she was profiled in Marie Claire, the TODAY show, and many national media outlets on how women without custody are stigmatized. She started a noncustodial parent community, created a survey, and published stories from other parents on her blog. Since the tragic death of her 17-year-old son, Rebekah has written about her grief and is passionate about Family Story’s work to support and defend the dignity, value, and well-being of all families.

Originally from Virginia, Rebekah grew up in California and earned a B.A. in Mass Communications at the University of California at Berkeley. She now lives in Atlanta after more than a decade in NYC.