IGDA-F Appoints Alyssa Walles as Executive Director
LOS ANGELES – June 29, 2022 – The International Game Developers Association Foundation (IGDA-F) is proud to announce Alyssa Walles as executive director.
Walles gained approval from members of the IGDA-F board of directors and began the official transition into the role of executive director immediately, replacing interim executive director Sarah Spiers. Walles has a background in business strategy, development, sales, and marketing in both non-profit and for-profit organizations. Prior to her appointment, Walles served as Senior Vice President, Publishing of MWM Interactive, an indie game start-up.
Throughout her career, Walles has been instrumental in launching the Walt Disney Gift Catalog, Sony PlayStation, re-launching the Atari brand, and negotiating national sports league agreements for Backyard Sports.
As IGDA-F’s executive director, she plans to continue the organization’s mission of fostering a diverse and inclusive worldwide game development community, with specific focus on fundraising to support the Foundation’s programs.
Alongside the IGDA Foundation’s mission to support a safe and inclusive environment for all members of our community, Walles aims to put her full effort forth when advocating for marginalized groups. Walles will use the skills she has gathered as a gaming veteran to pass opportunities on to the next generation.
The IGDA-F plans to promote a game development community representative of, and welcoming and inclusive to, every person who wants to make games by supporting the IGDA’s mission to support and empower game developers around the world in achieving fulfilling and sustainable careers.
“It is an honor and a privilege to serve as the IGDA Foundation’s executive director,” said Alyssa Walles. “I look forward to putting my energy towards serving our industry through expanding diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout game development and publishing.”
“We are extremely excited to welcome Alyssa as the permanent executive director of the IGDA-F and are looking forward to working with her to evolve and grow the foundation,” said Christina Alejandre, Chair of IGDA-F. “We would also like to thank Sarah Spiers for serving as our Interim Executive Director and are pleased that she will continue on with the foundation as its Director of Global Development.”
To find out more about the IGDA Foundation’s initiatives visit http://igdafoundation.org. To stay up to date with the latest details, please follow @IGDAFoundation on Twitter.
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About IGDA Foundation
The IGDA Foundation (IGDA-F) advances a diverse workforce and ecosystem for the video game industry to better reflect the millions of passionate players enjoying video games worldwide.
The IGDA-F focuses on promoting a game development community representative of, and welcoming and inclusive to, every person who wants to make games. The IGDA-F garners support for diversity and inclusion in the video game industry with initiatives such as its IGDA Scholars, Velocity, and Next Gen Leaders programs, with others in the pipeline.
The IGDA Foundation is a public charity, registered as a 501(c)3 organization in the United States.
To find out more about the IGDA Foundation’s initiatives visit http://igdafoundation.org and donate here.
Media Contacts
Kaylah Humphrey / Ray Porreca
Stride PR for IGDA Foundation
kaylah@stridepr.com / raymond@stridepr.com