Daughters of Greatness: Gretchen Hunt

Gretchen Hunt has spent her life advocating for women and for an end to gender-based violence.  She currently serves as the Director of the Mayor’s Office for Women, where she leads efforts to raise the status of women and gender diverse individuals through education, programs, and policy.

Under her leadership, the OFW launched the Office for Women Ambassador program, a civic engagement and leadership program that includes women and gender diverse individuals from all 26 Metro Council Districts.  She led efforts to pass legislation granting all Metro employees who are victims of domestic violence paid leave, a policy that was recently replicated in Lexington, Kentucky.

Her work has put Louisville on the international stage for gender equity. In 2023, Louisville was invited to join the City Hub and Network for Gender Equity (CHANGE), a network of 16 cities worldwide.  In 2025, Louisville was chosen as one of 3 CHANGE cities alongside Bogota, Colombia and Stockholm, Sweden, to participate in an innovative urban design project to explore how cities can be safer, more joyful, and more inclusive for women, gender diverse individuals, girls, and caregivers.

Previously, Gretchen served as Executive Director of Emerge Kentucky, Director of Victims Advocacy in the Kentucky Office of the Attorney General, Staff Attorney for the Kentucky Association of Sexual Assault Programs, Staff Attorney at the Cabinet for Family Services Office of Domestic Violence and Child Abuse, and Immigration Attorney at the Center for Women and Families.  Notable accomplishments include advocating for victim-centered legislative reforms, including Kentucky’s Human Trafficking Victims Rights Act, securing the first interim relief for a U Visa applicant in the nation, creating the Survivors Council at the KY Office of the Attorney General, securing federal grants to combat human trafficking and end Kentucky’s rape kit backlog, and establishing the KY Office of the Attorney General as green dot certified.

Gretchen has taught courses on gender and the law and domestic violence law as an adjunct faculty at the University of Louisville Gender Studies Department and the Brandeis School of Law and is a frequent contributor to publications on gender equity, human trafficking, and violence against women. In 2014, she ran for state representative in the 48^th district. Although she came up short, she considers it a win as it motivated other women around her to run for office.

In 2019, she was recognized for her advocacy on behalf of women and immigrant communities by being inducted into the Kentucky Civil Rights Hall of Fame, in 2023, was chosen as a Woman of Distinction by the Center for Women and Families and as Most Admired Woman in Public Service by Today’s Woman and in 2025, received the Public Policy Catalyst of the Year award from the NAWBO Kentucky chapter.

Gretchen was a founding member of La Casita Center and currently serves on the board of the Governors Scholars Program, is a Community Liaison on the American Bar Association Commission on Domestic and Sexual Violence and is a member of ZONTA, the Women’s Bar Association and Mothers Esquire.  She received her bachelors and juris doctorate from Boston College.  When she is not busy advocating for gender equity, she enjoys travel, thrifting, stand up paddleboarding, hiking and enjoying nature with her husband and two children.

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