Joyce Levingston

Executive Director of YWCA Black Hawk County

Joyce became the first African American Executive Director of the YWCA Black Hawk County on May 11, 2023. Joyce returned to the Cedar Valley from West Des Moines, where she spent two years working with youth and young moms. Her most recent position was as the Senior Program Director at the Young Women’s Resource Center in Des Moines, which provided: in-house programming for young girls and young moms ages 11-24; After-school groups; culture-specific groups, parenting, childbirth education, postpartum and Doula services.

Prior to relocating, Joyce was the 1st Director for the One City’s Momentum program, focusing on obtaining sustainable employment and community partnerships Joyce also spent several years at the University of Northern Iowa as a Graduate Research Associate and was the Community Liaison for the John Deere Community Needs Assessment, completed in 2021.

Joyce has a BA in Family Services, a Master’s in Leisure, Youth and Human Services and is a Doctoral Candidate for Allied Health, Recreation and Community Services, all through UNI. She sits on the College of Education Board at UNI and is a member of the NAACP Waterloo Chapter’s Education Committee.

Joyce has won several awards, including: Best Student Project Award for founding the Cedar Valley’s Little Free Pantries (2019), Ovation: A tribute to Iowa Women and Girls (2019 edition), the Waterloo Courier’s 20 under 40 award (2020) and the Martin Luther King Jr Banquet Community Award for her contribution to anti-racism work in the community (2021).

Joyce is a proud mother of three daughters and one son. She participated in the YWCA young moms program, when in her teens. Her children have also participated in programming, in their younger years, so the YWCA feels like home to Joyce.