Dr. Judith A. M. Smith has been the president and chief executive officer of HandsOn Jacksonville (formerly Volunteer Jacksonville) since 1995 when she retired from active military service in the United States Navy with the rank of Commander. She received her B.S. degree in Secondary Education from the University of Wisconsin, her M.S. degree in Education Leadership from the University of West Florida, and her Doctor of Management degree in Organizational Leadership from the University of Phoenix. She served as a part-time faculty member of the Graduate Business and Management School of the University of Phoenix from 2005 - 2007.
A Wisconsin native, Judith has called Jacksonville home since 1986. A graduate of Leadership Jacksonville in 1993, Judith’s current volunteer leadership responsibilities include serving as a member of the Points of Light Institute Board of Directors and as a member of the Board of Governors of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce, a Trustee Member, and as a member of the Cornerstone Advisory Council for Economic Development. She is the past chair of the International Center for Spirit at Work; past president of the Florida Association of Volunteer Centers, and past vice chair of the Volunteer Center National Network Council.
Judith is also a member of the Jacksonville Women’s Network and the East Arlington Rotary. She is a current member and has served as the chair of the United Way Agency Directors’ Association, has served as chair of the Jacksonville Commission on Family and Marriage; as president of the River City Business and Professional Women’s organization; as founding president of the First Coast Women Officers’ Association; and as a director on the boards of United Way of Northeast Florida, Mental Health Resource Center, Renaissance Center, Youth Leadership Jacksonville and PACE Center for Girls.
Under Judith’s leadership, HandsOn Jacksonville received the 2009 HandsOn Network Affiliate Leadership Award, and has been recognized in 2007 and 2009 by the Jacksonville Business Journal as one of The Best Places to Work in Northeast Florida. Judith was honored in 2004 by The Jacksonville Business Journal as one of Jacksonville’s Women of Influence. She is married to retired Navy captain, Chester B. Smith, and between them they have six children and nine grandchildren.