Jennifer Ridgeway

EVP, Social Responsibility at Minnesota Timberwolves

Jennifer Ridgeway, recently promoted to Executive Vice President of Social Responsibility, enters her third season with the organization. Her role includes developing and overseeing the Social Responsibility efforts, including all player-related community activities, for the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Minnesota Lynx, the Iowa Wolves & T-Wolves Gaming.

In her tenure with the team, Ridgeway launched the organization’s most comprehensive Social Responsibility campaign, ‘Pack Gives Back,’ uniting all four franchises to support the community, while also spearheading the newly designed Employee Volunteer program. This combined effort supports community partners who are committed to social impact in the areas of Education, Inclusion, and Wellness. Under her leadership, the Social Responsibility initiatives were recognized as a 2019 Minnesota Keystone Honored Company through the Minneapolis Chamber, a program that promotes corporate philanthropy by recognizing and honoring companies committed to charitable organizations. In addition, the Timberwolves & Lynx were recognized by a local non-profit, MATTER, awarding their 2020 Community Assist Award for impact in the local community.

Ridgeway also worked closely with the WNBA & NBA to nominate former Lynx Guard, Danielle Robinson and former Wolves Center, Gorgui Dieng for the WNBA & NBA Cares Community Assist Awards – both awarded in 2019. Through Ridgeway’s efforts, the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx were also named in 2019 as the first host mentoring site in Minnesota for the Global Sports Mentoring Program (GSMP), an initiative in partnership with espnW and the U.S. Department of State. This program selects emerging female leaders from around the world for a month-long mentorship in the United States alongside top American female executives from some of the most influential organizations in sports and business.

Ridgeway recently joined the Board for Meet Minneapolis and plays a key role in the Minnesota Timberwolves & Lynx Women in Sports Leadership Council, championing the professional growth of women in the sport industry. She represents the organization on the NBA Social Justice Task Force and has been instrumental in introducing key partnerships with RISE, the Minneapolis Foundation, and Team up for Change, all driving the organization’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives – critical work that continues to develop. In 2020, Ridgeway led the newly designed Wolves & Lynx civic engagement platform, ‘Pack the Vote’. She also serves as the Executive Director of the newly restructured public facing Board of Directors for the Fastbreak Foundation and will lead the Board to invest in robust grant-making support.

Ridgeway joined the Timberwolves and Lynx after serving as the Executive Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer for The Sanneh Foundation, an organization whose mission is to serve the holistic youth development needs of the Twin Cities Metro Area.

A Minnesota native, Ridgeway earned her Bachelor of Arts in Economics from UNC-Chapel Hill, her MBA in Finance from the University of St. Thomas, and recently completed the Sports Philanthropy Executive program at George Washington University and the Executive Leadership program at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management.

An avid cyclist and runner, Ridgeway resides with her two children, Greta & Gabriel, in Mendota Heights, MN.

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  • EVP, Social Responsibility

    Current role

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