Photo by Emma Quirk ‘26. Naomi Goldberg ‘04 discussed her time at the College and her work centering LGBTQ+ activism.
By Emma Quirk ’26
Photos Editor & Staff Writer
As it rained outside, students made their way to the Cassani Room in Shattuck Hall for a conversation with Naomi Goldberg ’04 about LGBTQ+ equity. Hosted by the Weismann Center for Leadership on Sept. 30, attendees sat in a circle snacking on muffins, fruit and yogurt as Goldberg discussed her educational and career journey.
After an introduction from Amy Martin, director of the Weissman Center and professor of English, Goldberg explained her educational journey to her current roles as deputy director and LGBTQ program director of the Movement Advancement Project. Goldberg currently lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan, with her wife and son.
MAP, founded in 2006, is an independent, nonprofit think tank dedicated to combining communications, policy and collaboration to advance equity for all. The 11-person organization is committed to “messaging research, policy research and movement capacity work,” according to Goldberg.
They organize focus groups with voters who are conflicted on current social issues, working to elicit the values of the participants so they can better understand where other people are coming from. This inspires the talking points that they then share with movement organizations.
For example, MAP recently facilitated a focus group conversation about transgender kids in sports. They began the focus group by asking general questions about kids in sports, and then specifically trans kids in sports.
These dialogues expose “a huge gap between what people understand for themselves or kids they know versus trans kids,” Goldberg said. “Part of what we try to do is to say … actually, trans kids want to play for the same reason that your kid wants to play, and then we might create videos [of] trans kids talking about playing on the team with their friends after school, or [how] their best friend is on the team, or they’re not very good at field hockey, but they love to play, and they like to see themselves getting better.”
Goldberg has worked at MAP for 13 years in varying positions. She started as an LGBT movement and policy researcher in 2010 and continued her work until she became deputy director and LGBTQ program director in 2021.
“As deputy director, I’ve been overseeing both movement strategy, all the operations and finances and HR components, and then also still continuing to do my own policy research and advocacy work,” Goldberg said.
Before discussing her current work, Goldberg opened with reflections on her time at Mount Holyoke College.
“In hindsight [my journey] looks linear, but in the moment … there were a lot of question marks,” Goldberg said. Originally a chemistry major at Bryn Mawr, she transferred to Mount Holyoke as a junior. She made this decision “in part because I came up here with a girlfriend who was a Smithie and … this area just felt so vibrant,” she said. “This is what college is supposed to be like.”
Goldberg’s academic trajectory changed in more ways than one. At Mount Holyoke, she became a Critical Social Thought major. “I kept thinking, ‘I want to be doing something impactful and relevant and [make] change and us[e] my skills to do that,’” Goldberg said. She explained that in CST, she felt everyone was “asking really interesting questions, and it felt very relevant.”
After graduation, she was still unsure about her future and ended up trying out various types of work. She received a master’s in public policy from the Ford School at the University of Michigan, participated in a fellowship at the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law and then began working at MAP.
There was a point in 2015 where she considered changing course again and moving to broader policy work, but she ultimately decided to continue with the LGBTQ+ movement. “I feel like I've built this career now working in the LGBTQ movement for 15 years that I have just found so rewarding,” Goldberg said.
Students were refreshed by her candor in how she spoke about the uncertainty she had as a student and beyond.
“We rarely hear people with successful, impactful careers talk about the uncertainty they felt as students. Naomi Goldberg did not know exactly what she wanted to do as a student, but in following what she was interested in, she was able to create for herself a career that is fulfilling and serves society at large,” Lia Di Lisio ’26 said. “Her story offers a refreshing perspective for students in a culture obsessed with the outcome.”
Naoise Grybko ’26 agreed, with their takeaway being “the idea that even if our path looks linear in hindsight, it doesn't always feel that way in the present.”
Goldberg’s willingness to change direction when something didn’t go according to plan was encouraging to students in attendance. “I was inspired by her courage to start a new path on her own when things didn’t meet her expectations,” Luyue Liu ’27 said.
The small group of attendees allowed for an intimate conversation, to which Goldberg’s status as an alum contributed. “I feel a unique connection with Naomi because she also belongs here,” Liu said. “I enjoyed listening to her talk [more] as a friend than in other roles.”
Frankie Crosby ’25 agreed with these sentiments. “I felt really comfortable during the event — it's always really lovely to be in community with people who are LGBTQ+ and/or want to engage with LGBTQ+ issues in their future careers,” she said. “It's also always wonderful to hear stories from queer people who have found their people and a professional career that they're passionate about.”
Goldberg’s advice for the next generation of queer people: to share their stories. “We still have so much public education and narrative change, and hearts and minds work that we need to do,” she said. “Share your own story. Share your friend's story … shar[ing] a broader vision of inclusivity among our friends and our family is really important.”
Narrowing in on Mount Holyoke, she professed that its “unique environment” allows for a perspective to which most people don’t have access. She believes the Mount Holyoke community subverts not just gender norms but ideas of leadership, visibility and representation.
“I loved going to … a historically women’s college,” Goldberg said. “I can talk about the importance of gender inclusivity, and it’s not a zero-sum game, and I think you are living that here.”
In general, she emphasized the importance of getting involved with local organizations and being visible in the community, especially in the wake of discussions about the perceived harms of giving children access to gender-affirming care.
“We’re hearing that in the data that the rhetoric [about gender-affirming care] is having a harmful impact on kids. And so the more that they can see you thriving [and] see you living your life [is] important,” Goldberg said. “I think the more we can do that, the better.”
A major takeaway students had from the conversation was the notion that there is no single perfect path. “I'll be taking away the idea that there's no ‘right way’ to go about combining your interests into a career,” Crosby said. “There are so many avenues for engaging in LGBTQ+ activism, all of which are valuable.”