STEM & Entertainment Engagement Advisor, Association of National Advertisers’ SeeHer initiative
Knatokie Ford, PhD
Knatokie M. Ford, PhD currently serves as the STEM & Entertainment Engagement Advisor for the Association of National Advertisers’ SeeHer initiative. In this role, Dr. Ford co-leads SeeHer’s efforts to deepen relationships with content creators. In 2018, she spearheaded the launch of #WriteHerRight, which provides tools to support storytellers’ efforts to integrate more authentic depictions of women into their work. As a biomedical scientist and social entrepreneur, she is also founder and CEO of Fly Sci™ Enterprise, an education and media consulting organization focused on leveraging the power of storytelling to promote social change, particularly in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Dr. Ford is also an international advocate for STEM and media inclusion— she has traveled throughout the United States and to parts of Africa sharing her work and inspiring story.
Previously, Dr. Ford served as a Senior Policy Advisor in the Obama White House Office of Science and Technology Policy where she designed and led the “Image of STEM” project, which is listed in the top 100 science & technology accomplishments of the Obama Administration. Prior to coming to the White House, she was a postdoctoral fellow at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, MA. She is a former middle school teacher in Los Angeles, CA where she also worked in the entertainment industry.
Dr. Ford served on the 2018-2019 Barbie Global Advisory Council and currently serves on the Toy Association’s STEM/STEAM Strategic Leadership Committee. She received her PhD in Experimental Pathology from Harvard University and her BS/MS in Chemistry/Biological Chemistry from Clark Atlanta University. Regis College awarded Dr. Ford an honorary doctorate of science in 2017.