Sherrie A. Ryan P’08

Chief Operating Officer
AAA Southern New England (AAA SNE)
Providence, Rhode Island

Employed since 1979 by AAA Southern New England (AAA SNE), a regional affiliate of the American Automobile Association, which serves two million members in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, Ryan was appointed the chief operating officer of AAA Southern New England in 2005. 

As chief operating officer, she is responsible for AAA SNE’s Automotive Services, Human Resources, Travel Agency, Branch Operations, Member Relations, and the newly launched AAA Glass, a mobile glass replacement service. Responsible for an annual operating budget of $100 million, she oversees a workforce of 1,400 employees, a network of 350 independent road services contractors, and member services in 30 branch locations.

Prior to her 2005 appointment as chief operating officer, Ryan served AAA Southern New England as senior vice president from 1999 to 2004, vice president of automotive services in 1997-1998 and staff director of member services from 1990 to 1996. She began her career at AAA Southern New England in 1979 as manager, insurance and was promoted to director, insurance in 1986. 

In 1983, she launched AAA’s property/casualty business in Massachusetts and built it into a $10 million operation. In 1990, she became the first woman in AAA’s history to assume executive-level responsibility for road serve operations. In 2001, she formulated and executed a strategy to improve road service performance in Massachusetts and Rhode Island with the result that AAA Southern New England now ranks among AAA’s highest-performing clubs.

Since 2000, Ryan has been a board member of the Providence/Cranston Workforce Investment Board and also serves as acting chair of the region’s Youth Council. In 1993, President George H. W. Bush appointed her to serve on a Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) Task Force charged with revitalizing the Emergency Broadcast System. She is a past member of the Sacred Heart Elementary School Advisory Board in Brockton, MA. 

Ryan received a B.A. from Columbia University in 1974. Elected a Stonehill trustee in spring 2005, she resides with her husband, Paul, in Carver, Mass. The Ryans are the parents of three children, including her son, Michael, a member of the Class of 2008 at Stonehill College.