Jolene Smith is the CEO of Free the Slaves. Under Ms. Smith’s direction, Free the Slaves has grown to have programs in Ghana, Haiti, Nepal and Sudan in addition to its work in India and the United States, to conduct further groundbreaking research such as the first-ever study on modern slavery happening within the United States and to make available the world’s largest freely available video library of modern slavery in order to facilitate education on this issue. She has spoken out against modern slavery at venues throughout the United States, and has been quoted by various print, TV and radio outlets in the US and abroad, including CBS’ 48 Hours, Univisión, the Miami Herald, Talk Radio Johannesburg and various National Public Radio programs. Jolene has lectured at American University, Elon University, Miami University, Queens College, Trinity College, UCLA and Yeshiva University. Before launching Free the Slaves, Ms. Smith worked at the Center for International Policy and the Center of Concern, both in Washington, DC, and at Anderson Consulting in Houston, TX. She graduated from the University of Notre Dame where she was a Notre Dame Scholar and a recipient of the National Security Education Program scholarship to study Quichua in Ecuador. She served briefly in the US Reserve Officers Training Corp and is a Qualified Paratrooper.