Assistant Director of Marketing and Communications
Alainna Liloia is the Assistant Director of Marketing and Communications for the Office of the Provost, where she leads strategic communications for the university’s artificial intelligence research and global engagement. In this role, she provides strategic leadership and direction for institutional messaging, storytelling and branding across Duke’s AI and global initiatives, working with senior leadership to ensure alignment with university priorities and elevate Duke’s global reputation. She previously served as AI Communications Manager for Duke Learning Innovation and Lifetime Education, where she led the development of a centralized communications strategy for the university’s AI work and the Provost’s AI at Duke initiative. She received Duke University’s 2025 Emerging Communicator Award.
Alainna holds a Ph.D. in Middle Eastern and North African Studies from the University of Arizona and an M.A. in Religious Studies from Wake Forest University. Alainna’s scholarship and other writing spans women’s issues in the Arab world, Middle East politics, human rights, and emerging technologies and has been featured in a variety of publications, including Oxford University Press, the Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies (JMEWS), Business Insider, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Tech Policy Press, and The Conversation. Alainna’s past experience also includes teaching Middle East and South Asia Studies as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Wake Forest University and communications experience in the nonprofit and EdTech sectors.