Deborah Ruane Sparks, the heir apparent to Ellen Voie as president and CEO of the Women in Trucking Association Inc. (WIT), has resigned to become the executive director of the National Motor Freight Traffic Association (NMFTA), which oversees the system that classifies commodities for transportation based on several shipment characteristics.
Sparks (pictured) will take over on Feb. 14, the Alexandria, Virginia-based group said.
Sparks joined WIT in January 2020 as vice president as part of a strategy to transition into Voie’s role upon her retirement. In an e-mail on Thursday, Voie said that she still plans to retire by July 2023, and that she is hopeful a successor is chosen soon.
A 20-year transportation industry veteran, Sparks was previously the director of transportation and community outreach at Wreaths Across America, a group that travels the country placing wreaths on the headstones of fallen American servicemen and women. Before that, she served as vice president of business development at the Truckload Carriers Association and director of marketing for American Trucking Associations.
Voie founded the nonprofit WIT in 2007 to expand opportunities for women in trucking and to give females a greater voice in industry issues. WIT today has about 6,000 corporate and individual members in 10 countries. Women account for about 10% of all over-the-road drivers in the U.S., according to WIT estimates.