Alumni Profiles

“My mom is originally from Thailand. When she moved to the United States, her degrees and experience didn’t transfer. I watched her then decide to start her own business and struggle to make this business succeed for fifteen years due to a variety of systemic and economic factors. It’s really exciting that I work for Boston Impact Initiative now, where I get to provide support to entrepreneurs and enterprises with similar backgrounds and experiences as my mom. [...] At BII, the impact side is held in the same regard as the investment side, which is so aligned with the Heller way.”

Learn more about Paulina’s work. 

“I really loved the idea of all my classes being applicable to any business challenge — whether it be at a nonprofit or a for-profit. I didn’t want a traditional MBA. I was looking for a more holistic education that I could take with me into the world to be a better person and contribute more to the causes that I cared about.”

Learn more about Katie’s work.

“No matter the industry—technology, affordable housing, impact investing—I’m always looking for the people trying to get into the game but who are just on the periphery,” she says. “How can I help them get into the field and launch their impact journey?”

Learn more about Adwoa's work.

“I get to be part of a team and organization that saves people’s lives—which remains particularly important during the heightened stakes of the COVID crisis,” he says. “But rather than being on the front lines [as a pilot], I can analyze the enterprise from a bird’s-eye view through the lens of data science and operations.”

Learn more about Matthew's work.

“I was drawn in by Heller’s social justice focus. I didn’t want to have to do a more traditional graduate program and translate that to the work I wanted to do. I wanted to be around people who cared about the same things I cared about.”

Pearce still draws on her classes, such as fundraising and development, practicing philanthropy, and financial management, as well as her fellowship experience at the Sillerman Center for the Advancement of Philanthropy, in her work today.

Learn more about Maryse's work.

"I've always been interested in public policy and public sector work because of the potential to bring positive change to some of societies most pervasive challenges. However, before coming to Heller, I wasn't sure exactly what my focus would be. Through a combination of academic and real-world experiences during my time at Heller, I became more attuned to the role that government can play in addressing social determinants of health and other upstream factors that can improve population health and reduce inequities. The combined MPP/MBA program has given me the content knowledge and management skills to understand and analyze these issues."

Learn more about Fran's work.

"Heller's curriculum, faculty, staff, and students prepared me well to work directly with senior-level financial and strategic decision makers. From the Team Consulting Project to accounting classes to the focus on social justice and equity, Heller bolstered my technical capacities as well as refined the interpersonal skills needed to help mission-driven organizations achieve their outcomes. The transition to my current role was smooth, as I was able to hit the ground running and contribute immediately to team efforts."

"As a consultant now, having the Team Consulting Project experience was immensely valuable. I'm very confident interacting with clients, meeting tight deadlines and working with a diverse set of colleagues to provide high quality work. Heller taught me to be bold in my thinking and ideas, giving me the confidence to push for change in the workplace as much as in my personal life."

Read more about Nicole's work. 

"Heller is a great place for people who would like to be bridges. To get the tools you need to better communicate in an area you're already passionate about. So, save all your research papers, your TCP (Team Consulting Project) paper and proposal writing projects."

Read more about Kristen's work. 

"The pressing environmental, economic and social issues of today are all interconnected and will become more so in the coming decades. Approaching them holistically will be key. Both the SID and MBA programs mix the theoretical with the practical but for me, the SID program heightened my awareness of social injustice while the MBA program gave me the hard skills needed to develop strategies to work against it. Together, these programs—along with the Heller staff and faculty—built upon my previous professional and educational experiences and positioned me well to get to where I am today."

"I provide oversight and manage risk for FHA insured and/or HUD assisted multifamily housing for disabled, elderly, and low-income individuals. The Heller MBA prepared me to add value in non-traditional business fields where those skills are highly coveted. It's gratifying to know that the business decisions that I make create a social impact."

"My education at Heller provided a well-rounded foundation for the strategic, financial, and leadership skills required to lead in the nonprofit sector. Hope and Comfort is a relatively young organization with ambitious plans for growth - so I enjoy the opportunity to wear many hats, hustle in an entrepreneurial environment, and pull upon learnings from my diverse Heller courses. Not to mention, I got connected to this opportunity in the first place because someone in my Heller cohort made an introduction!"

"Sometimes policymakers don’t understand the contextual issues at the community level. That's why I wanted to focus on the role of policy analysis and research. How do you craft policy to change the situation and the negative aspects of policymaking to address the challenges in the community that you’re witnessing? I realized, to shift paradigms we were witnessing with respect to economic fragmentation, I needed to have the tools to champion all the outcomes I'd like to see and that's what led me to Heller."

Read more about Ricky's work. 

"The most important thing I took away from Heller was the way I approach my work. As someone passionate about social change, I bring a much stronger equity lens to every aspect of my work as a result of my time at Heller. I also feel more confident, more organized, and generally more impactful in my work processes."

"I manage, support, and implement all of Keshet's community building work in Boston by creating and running programs for LGBTQ Jews. I also support Keshet's education and training work by building relationships and working with Boston-area Jewish institutions. Heller's MBA program gave me financial acumen for budgeting and the knowledge to think strategically about my programming long-term."