“Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in.” -Sue Premo
As the Board of Directors Communications Council Director, Ashley Millet LeBlanc will coordinate and disseminate information about the Junior League of New Orleans (JLNO). Ashley will oversee the promotion of JLNO’s events and community projects via traditional advertising, social media, press releases, Lagniappe magazine and the organization’s website.
A graduate of John Ehret High School, Ashley went on to receive many degrees from Nicholls State University, including a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication; Bachelor of Science in Culinary Arts with a minor in marketing; Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction Concentrating in High Incidence Disabilities and Applied Behavior Analysis; Master of Education in educational Leadership K-12 and an Education Diagnostician add-on certification. Ashley has also received an Early Childhood and Elementary Education Alternative certification from Southern University at New Orleans, and an English as a Second Language certification and Reading Specialist add-on certification from the University of Holy Cross. She is an English Language Specialist at the High School campus of Morris Jeff Community School. Plus, Ashley is a two-time Collegiate National Champion in powerlifting!
As a member of JLNO for over ten years, Ashley credits the League on her ability to manage projects with many moving parts, people and concurrent deadlines. Now, as a board member, she would like to continue the great work of communication council directors prior to her while also implementing a few new initiatives.
“We have had to change the way we do many things due to the pandemic, and the communications team became an even more integral part of keeping members connected to what was happening in and around the League,” Ashley says. “Many of the other councils were amazing in their ability to completely flip the way their events were to take place and meet with our council to create plans to get the word out and involve members. This year, as the city is opening back up, I would like to take what we have learned about the way we communicate and engage our members and community to further the reach of the Junior League of New Orleans. We will continue to deliver consistent, timely and clear communication through our varied media outlets.”
A resident of the Westbank, Ashley and her husband Joshua are proud parents of Henry (5) and Eloise (3). When not teaching, volunteering, or parenting, she is the co-owner of a small cottage bakery called Sweet Lagniappe Nola, offering custom decorated cookies.
“I love getting to know so many different people and being able to use my talents to support my community,” she says. “I get to help and have fun at the same time! That is one of the main reasons that I joined the Junior League of New Orleans. We had many JLNO volunteers come through when I taught at the Edible Schoolyard. They were consistent, hard workers that seemed to have fun volunteering. I decided that this was a group I wanted to be involved in.”
