Fatima Heyward is a dedicated leader with a proven track record of making positive changes in her community. Fatima's numerous leadership roles are a testament to her dedication and inspire respect. She is firmly committed to social justice, DEIB, racial equity, and public service. She aims to equip young leaders and community members with the tools and resources to stand up for their human and civil rights.

 

Appointed by Governor Phil Murphy, Fatima serves as the youngest commissioner on the New Jersey Amistad Commission, whose mission is to promote a more comprehensive implementation of educational awareness programs regarding the African slave trade, slavery in America, and the many contributions Africans have made to American society. In addition, Fatima is President of the New Jersey Young Democrats and made history by becoming the organization's first African American woman president. Re-elected as president in February 2025, Fatima has served as president for over half a decade. She is also the President Emeritus and Co-founder of the South Jersey Young Democrats Black Caucus, Emerging Leaders Caucus Chair for the New Jersey Democratic State Committee, 1st Vice Chair for the YDA Association of Chartered Unit Presidents, 2nd Vice Chair for Young Democrats of America Black Caucus,  Executive Board Member for the Gloucester County NAACP, and Advisory Committee Member for the Bipartisan Coalition of Women's Appointments within the Center for American Women and Politics. ​Additionally, Fatima has served as the YDA Issues Advocacy Director and YDA Chapter Building Deputy Director.

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Professionally, Fatima Heyward is the National Director of Corporate Partnerships at Teach For America, where she manages external relationships and works closely with internal stakeholders across the organization to meet the objectives of TFA through impactful programming. At TFA, Fatima is responsible for bringing in six to seven-figure corporate gifts, fostering new corporate relationships and partnership opportunities, building workforce development pipelines, and developing and leading partner conversations that benefit teachers and students nationwide. Previously, Fatima was the Reproductive Justice and Community Partnerships Manager at Planned Parenthood Action Fund of New Jersey and Planned Parenthood of Northern, Central, and Southern New Jersey. In her role at Planned Parenthood, she formulated and implemented expansion projects to deepen Planned Parenthood's impact in communities with high sexual and reproductive health disparities through a reproductive justice lens.

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Fatima's academic journey is a testament to her dedication and passion. She graduated Cum Laude in Communications from Rider University in 2015, where she was selected for Omicron Delta Kappa Leadership Honor Society, Order of Omega Leadership Honor Society, Who's Who Among Colleges and Universities, Lambda Pi Eta Communication Honor Society, and Rider Star Scholar. She is a proud sister of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, and served as the Tau Kappa Chapter's president during her undergraduate studies, winning numerous awards for the chapter. In 2022, she was invited to join Rider Univeristy's Alumni Board of Directors, serving as the youngest board member. Her desire for knowledge and continued growth led her to become an Executive MBA candidate at Howard University. The EMBA program is highly competitive and only accepts those with advanced professional experience and leadership skills. While the average age of students accepted into the program is 38, Fatima was accepted at age 30. 

 

Multiple organizations have recognized Fatima for her contributions to the community on the local, state, and national levels. Some of the honors include the NAACP Visionary Leader Award, SJ Magazine's Woman to Watch Award, SNJ Millennials 30 Under 30 Trendsetters Award, National Coalition of 100 Black Women - Southern NJ Chapter 16th Annual Candace Women's Achievement Award, the first-ever President's Award at the Young Democrats of America National Convention, Sun Newspapers' 2024 Political Trailblazer Award, Girls; Live, Love, Laugh Inc. Trailblazer Award, and Assemblywoman's Shavonda Sumter's Powerful Women of NJ List. Since 2019, she has been annually listed in Insider NJ's Top 100 Millennials and, since 2020, Insider NJ's 2020 African American Power List.