The start of a year can bring a lot of movement behind a website’s homepage. At Cup of Jo we’ve had several notable shifts: a beloved editor returned from parental leave after an unexpectedly eventful birth, a long-time contributor became a full-time senior editor, a treasured colleague departed after seven years, and a trusted friend stepped into the role of Partnerships Director. We wanted to step out from behind the curtain to introduce the people who shape the site — their roles, routines, and the small habits that make them human.
Below are brief, friendly profiles that capture both professional highlights and personal details. You’ll read about the founder who grew the project from a weekend habit into a daily destination, the editors who steer cultural coverage, and the newsletter team that curates style and design content. Expect a mix of career notes and everyday comforts — favorite breakfasts, childhood nicknames, and the books that stuck with them.
Leadership and editorial vision
Joanna Goddard is the site’s Founder & Editor. She began Cup of Jo in 2007 and expanded it from a small weekend hobby into a daily site with a team of contributors and photographers. In 2026 she launched Big Salad, a weekly newsletter about style, design, and relationships that became a top fashion and beauty publication on Substack. Joanna lives in Brooklyn with her two talkative boys. Her weekday ritual can be a walk for coffee or a quiet cup of cinnamon tea at home, and she still answers to an affectionate childhood nickname used by her dad. A reread of a once-rebellious classic reshaped how she sees readers and life — a reminder that perspective changes with time.
Kelsey Miller joined as Senior Editor after contributing to the site for years. A culture writer and author of three books — including the memoir Big Girl and the pop-culture history I’ll Be There For You — she also saw her first novel, Old Money, published in 2026. Kelsey writes about diet culture, the body positive movement, and cultural history, and she lives in Brooklyn with her husband and daughter. Her weekday breakfasts range from perfectly jammy eggs and buttered sourdough on good mornings to leftover bites from her daughter on busier ones. She still goes by a childhood nickname coined by her dad and swears by a weekly midweek Shake Shack outing with fellow parents as a breath-of-fresh-air routine.
Partnerships, columns, and the newsletter desk
Partnerships direction
Alison Piepmeyer brings two decades of marketing experience to her role as Partnerships Director. After running a social media agency and working with brands and creators, she moved from the West Coast to New York in 2026 with her husband and two children. Alison loves audiobooks, hosting a bagel brunch, and a morning bowl of Trader Joe’s goat yogurt loaded with muesli and berries. She’s the colleague who will cheerfully admit to watching delightfully trashy reality shows, and a business book about mindset helped shift how she approaches failure, feedback, and parenting.
Columnists and feature editors
Christine Pride writes the Race Matters column and has moved from two decades in publishing into fiction. A self-described french fry enthusiast, she coauthored novels with Jo Piazza and published a solo novel, All The Men I’ve Loved Again, in 2026. Christine lives in Harlem, keeps a late-morning rhythm that often skips breakfast, and relaxes by watching a lot of television. Her childhood nickname is used by family, and she cites her own debut novel as a life-changing turning point in her career.
Jannelle Sanchez is a Senior Editor who joined Cup of Jo in 2026 after working on marketing teams in tech. She returned recently from parental leave following the dramatic arrival of her third child and lives in the Bay Area with her husband and three kids. Her go-to morning is coffee with a splash of half-and-half and toast with strawberry jam. Jannelle’s family still uses a playful elongated form of her name from childhood, and she finds simple joys in planting seeds with her daughter and watching sprouts appear — a small ritual that grounds the busy days.
Kaitlyn Teer leads the Big Salad newsletter as its Senior Newsletter Editor, interviewing authors and editors frequently. Her essay collection, Little Apocalypses, is due to debut soon. She lives in Washington State with her husband and two children and prefers peanut butter toast — the goopier the better. Colleagues call her by initials, outdoorsy hobbies and quiet crafts like knitting keep her centered, and Annie Dillard’s work remains a touchstone for noticing the remarkable in ordinary places.
Why we shared these snapshots
We wanted to bring familiar names into clearer focus so readers know who’s shaping the stories they read. These profiles highlight the mix of editorial experience, creative projects, and everyday life that informs our voice. From the newsletter desk to the features column and partnerships, this group blends long-form thinking with the small rituals that keep them human. We’re excited to be here and grateful you’re reading — stay tuned for more voices, features, and the occasional behind-the-scenes note. P.S. We’ve also rounded up career lessons and the single best piece of advice that changed how we work.
