Zoë Towns

Old Dominion Visiting Fellow in the Humanities Council and Department of African American Studies (Fall 2022)

Portrait of Towns

Zoë Towns is the Vice President for Criminal Justice Reform at FWD.us, a bipartisan political advocacy organization committed to safely and significantly driving down America’s incarceration rate. Zoë and her team work in coalition with policymakers and constituencies across the political spectrum to advance sentencing, parole, and pretrial reforms that deliver more freedom, opportunity, and fairness.

Before joining FWD.us, Zoë was the Criminal Justice Project Director at the Pew Charitable Trusts where she collaborated with state leaders, administrators, practitioners and advocates on legislative reforms in Mississippi, Oregon, Utah, Louisiana, and elsewhere. Earlier in her career, Zoë was the inaugural director of The Bronx Freedom Fund, a nonprofit bail fund in the South Bronx. Zoë has a B.A. in ethnic studies and creative writing from Columbia University and a masters in criminal justice policy from Kings College London where she was a Fulbright Scholar.

Humanities Council Logo
Italian Studies Logo
American Studies Logo
Humanistic Studies Logo
Ancient World Logo
Canadian Studies Logo
ESC Logo
Journalism Logo
Linguistics Logo
Medieval Studies Logo
Renaissance Logo
Film Studies Logo