THE CHAMPION OF COMMUNITY

Olivia Reeder

Dean, Early College at WVU Parkersburg and Director, WVU at Parkersburg Foundation

SUPERPOWER: Keeping the momentum going

Olivia Reeder remembers being a frustrated college student, bouncing from school to school and major to major. While walking the halls of Early College at WVU Parkersburg, she was approached by staffer Jeff Holland asking how he could help, and she finally felt hope. “I showed him my schedule for a major that I wasn’t interested in, and he asked what I liked to do. I told him I loved newspaper in high school,” she says. “He took me to meet the journalism professor, Torie Jackson. That woman changed my life.”

Reeder completed her undergraduate degree in business administration with an emphasis in public relations and an associate’s degree in journalism. After earning her master’s degree in integrated marketing communications at West Virginia University, she was named coordinator of the Media and Communications program.

Now Reeder is Dean of Early College, which serves more than 800 students annually. Her work reflects a favorite quote: “You don’t have to move away from a community to create a better one.” She has created a vast network of area high school counselors, vocational–technical centers, alumni, donors, area businesses, and officials in that role. Results include securing funding for critical programs, bringing students into those programs, and promoting the overall well-being of communities. Reeder also serves as the executive director of the WVU at Parkersburg Foundation, spearheading fundraising for projects such as a capital campaign for the WVUP Innovation and Technology Center and The Student Health Fund, which provides free health care to students.

Through her volunteer work with Clutch MOV, Downtown PKB, The Historic Oakland Estate, and the West Virginia Symphony League, Reeder advocates for the preservation of Appalachian arts and history. She was recently elected PVA President for Parkersburg Catholic Schools.

The example set by her mom, who went back to school to finish her bachelor’s degree when Reeder was in middle school, has been a driving force in Reeder’s life. Reeder is currently pursuing her doctoral degree in higher education administration through Valdosta State University.

Written by Julie Perine

This profile corrects inaccuracies in our Fall 2024 print edition.

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Since 2014 WV Living magazine has been honoring West Virginia Wonder Women, amazing women who are raising the bar in their communities, serving as beacons of light in their industries, and forcing change for the greater good. WV Living is proud to celebrate these Appalachian mothers, millennials, and mavens proving that in a time full of uncertainty, divisiveness, and hate, love for one another is all we really need. No need for bulletproof bracelets or a golden lasso of truth—these women are creating a better West Virginia with their can-do attitudes and Mountain State spirit.