Board of Directors | Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts (GSEMA)
Deb is CEO and co-owner of Lindauer, a global search and talent firm serving the education, health and science, arts and culture, policy and advocacy, and civic and social justice arenas. Known as an innovative leader in nonprofit and professional services arenas, Deb was previously Senior EVP and Managing Director for Grenzebach Glier and Associates (GG+A) in Chicago, overseeing all domestic and global philanthropic consulting practices. She also served as Chief Development Officer and Interim Chief Strategy Officer for Girl Scouts of the USA, where she led the launch of the $1 billion ToGetHerThere fundraising campaign, shaped the initiative to engage 50 million Girl Scouts, and served as executive sponsor of the 2014 National Council Session and Convention. Deb held prior executive roles at Simmons University, Tufts Medical Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund, and Concord Academy. A seasoned volunteer leader, she serves on the Board of The Giving Institute, the Editorial Board of Giving USA, and ex-officio on the Board of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) in her role as Chair of the CASE Industry Advisory Council. Deb was former Chair of the Board of Directors for the Human Rights Campaign Foundation in Washington, DC and still serves on the HRC Board Emeritus Council. She continues to advance inclusion and equity as Chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee of the Giving Institute and through her work with Women of Color in Philanthropy (WŌC), the CASE Opportunity and Inclusion Center, the Executive Search Roundtable, and various appointed roles. Deb was a founding team member of City Year, which today has youth service teams in more than 31 regions across the United States, the United Kingdom, and South Africa. She was honored as a Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts Leading Woman in 2019 and as a 2021 member of the YW Boston Academy of Women Achievers. Her expertise includes governance and strategic planning; organizational growth and talent; equity, inclusion and diversity; and fundraising, marketing and communications. A respected speaker and facilitator, Deb holds a AB from Harvard University and an MBA from Simmons University. Deb joined the Board of Directors in 2020 and became Board Chair and President in 2022.
Kelly is a Senior Vice President with State Street’s Client division. Kelly has over 25 years of experience supporting world class asset management firms. Before joining State Street in 2007, Kelly held the position of Director of Global Client Service for MFS Investment Management. She also worked at Putnam Investments as a Senior Vice President overseeing the Global Client Service teams and at MDT Advisers (now Federated Investors) in various operational and marketing roles. Kelly started her career at State Street Research and Management (now BlackRock) in the Portfolio Administration department. Throughout her career, Kelly has focused on ensuring that client needs are known and expectations exceeded by leading large- scale projects to enhance the overall client experience, address regulatory changes, and improve operating effectiveness. She is a member of the Villanova Finance Department Advisory Committee. Kelly earned a BS in finance from Villanova University. Kelly joined the Board of Directors in 2017.
Elizabeth is a partner in PwC’s Assurance practice. She has over 18 years of experience in public accounting, focused primarily on providing audit and accounting advisory services to privately held clients. Elizabeth co-leads PwC’s northeast women’s initiatives, which focus on developing PwC women as leaders within PwC and in their community. Beyond her experience in public accounting, Elizabeth served as controller for AMR Research, a Boston-based company. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants. Elizabeth graduated with honors from Babson College and is a certified public accountant. Elizabeth joined the Board of Directors in 2016.
Jane retired in August 2016 as the Executive Vice President, Director of Consumer and Small Business Banking at Rockland Trust. She has more than 28 years of experience in marketing and general management in banking. Having joined Rockland Trust as Executive Vice President in July 2004, Jane was responsible for the branch network, call center, deposit operations, business banking sales, home equity, and mortgage lending departments. She also served as President of the Rockland Trust Foundation. Previously, Jane was President and Chief Operating Officer of Cambridgeport Bank until its sale to Citizens Bank in 2003. She was also President of Port Financial Corp (NASDAQ: PORT),the holding company for the bank. Her board service includes the Board of Directors of the Franciscan Children’s where she chairs the Audit and Compliance committee. Jane serves as chair of GSEMA’s Finance and Investment Committees. She holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and accounting from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an MBA from the University of Virginia. In 2006, GSEMA honored Jane with a Leading Women Award for her commitment to the advancement of women in leadership. Jane joined the Board of Directors in 2016.
Diane is Director of Program Management at FundGuard. Prior to joining FundGuard, Diane served as Head of Global Delivery at Clearwater Analytics and Chief Client Officer at Eagle Investments Systems, a BNY Mellon company. She received the BNY Mellon STAR award in 2004. Prior to that, Diane worked in the Financial Services practice at Deloitte Consulting and at Fidelity Investments. She brings a valuable combination of experience in software implementations, relationship management, client service, and business consulting. In 2018, Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts honored Diane with a Leading Women Award for her commitment to the advancement of women in leadership. She earned a dual Bachelor of Arts in mathematics and computer science from Boston College and a Master of Science in computer information systems from Bentley College. Diane joined the Board of Directors in 2019.
As chief executive officer, Barbara Fortier brings her proven operations expertise and dedication to championing female leadership development to the youth and adult members of Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts (GSEMA). Prior to this role and for over 20 years, Barbara served as the chief operations officer for GSEMA, and was responsible for overseeing several key functional areas of the council including product program, facilities management, membership, girl and outdoor program, and information technology. She also provides leadership for key initiatives including strategic planning, information security program management, and GSUSA governance requirements. Barbara has over 35 years of experience in information technology, telecommunications, networking, facilities management, strategic planning, product sales, business process re-engineering, and complex project management methodologies in for-profit and non-profit environments. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology from the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, and earned a Master of Business Administration from the Whittemore School of Business and Economics, University of New Hampshire.
Michael serves as the Chief Legal Officer of Immuneering Corporation (Nasdaq: IMRX), a clinical-stage oncology company, a position he has served in since July 2021. Prior to joining Immuneering, Michael served as General Counsel and Secretary of Frequency Therapeutics (Nasdaq: FREQ) from September 2019 to July 2021. In this role, he served as a member of the Executive Leadership Team and established and led Frequency’s Legal Department as its first in-house attorney. He also played a key role in Frequency’s initial public offering in October 2019. Prior to his time at Frequency, Michael was an associate at Latham & Watkins LLP, a leading international law firm where he worked on corporate transactional, securities and general business and governance matters, with an emphasis on representing high-growth technology and life sciences companies. Michael holds a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law and a BBA, summa cum laude, from the University of Miami.
Jeannette serves as Assistant Vice President of Engagement and Diversity, Student Affairs at Curry College. She has spent her 20+ year career immersed in the industries of higher education, management, and non-profit. She has done consulting, training and advocacy work in the areas of diversity, equity, inclusion, social justice, campus/community development, and student services development. Jeannette has served in a variety of management roles for such organizations as Boston University, Suffolk University, Wentworth Institute of Technology, Bentley University, and Mount Ida College. She is a founding member and past board member of the African American Women in Higher Education Association New England. She currently holds professional memberships with the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, the National Association of Black Accountants, the Massachusetts Association of Women in Education, and the Association of American Colleges and Universities. Jeannette has been a member of the National Black MBA Association for over ten years, holding positions in the Boston Chapter on its leadership board. She is an active mentor with the National Black MBA Leaders of Tomorrow Program, and is a Trustee to the Mission Grammar School located in Boston's historic South End. Jeanette earned an undergraduate degree in Political Science from Southeastern Massachusetts University and a master’s degree in education with a concentration in student personnel development and counseling from Northeastern University. She is a graduate Fellow of The Partnership, Inc. Leadership Development Program. Jeannette joined the Board of Directors in 2021.
Julie is a Managing Director and Senior Trust officer with Bank of America Private Bank in Boston, Massachusetts. In this role, Julie is involved with advising individuals and families on a broad spectrum of wealth planning topics with a focus on estate planning and fiduciary administration. Julie joined Bank of AmericaPrivate Bank (formerly U.S. Trust) in 2009 and has spent time in both at the Fiduciary Division as a Trust Officerand the WealthStrategies Division as an analyst. In both capacities, Julie has provided technical advice in relation to estate planning and taxation, sophisticated gifting strategies, income tax projections and financial modeling. She holds the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification, the Certified Trust and Fiduciary Advisor (CTFA) designation, and is a member of the Boston Estate Planning Council. Julie received her bachelor’s degree in trust and wealth management, with a minor in financial planning. She received her MBA from Campbell University with a concentration in investments. She joined the Board of Directors in 2022.
Susan is a Retail Market Manager for Milford Federal Bank. Susan is responsible for managing multiple locations while overseeing business relationships that support retail, and has been in the banking industry for over 20 years. Her primary role is working with the branches and supporting sales goals and initiatives. Susan has worked in several capacities during her career, and financial literacy and education is a passion that she supports. Through connections with multiple troops, Susan has had the pleasure to lead banking virtual tours, and online financial literacy classes with Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts. Susan graduated from Framingham State College with a BA in applied microeconomics, an MBA from New England College of Business and Finance, as well as The Wharton School of Business Leadership Program and UPenn Graduate School of Banking. Susan joined the Board of Directors in 2022.
Julie Linnell Cowan serves as Vice President of Commercial Lending at Rockland Trust, where she works with clients across Cape Cod and southeastern Massachusetts to provide them with the solution to their financing needs. She has decades of experience in the banking industry, having worked previously for both TD Bank and Bank of Boston. Prior to joining Rockland Trust, she served at MassDevelopment, supporting private industry, nonprofits and communities in the areas of economic development and housing, working in the Greater Boston region and in the four counties of Western Massachusetts. A committed volunteer and philanthropist, she served on the boards of the United Way of Hampshire, Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech, the Greater Northampton Chamber Board of Directors and most recently, the Massachusetts Economic Development Council. From 2013 to 2016, she left banking to be Chief Development Officer at Clarke Schools, as a member of an executive leadership team tasked with transforming and expanding the organization. Her fundraising success led to recognition as AFP Volunteer of the Year in Hampshire County and the Hennessey Award from that region’s United Way. Her study of International Economics at Suffolk University provided a perspective on how interconnected we are on both local and global levels, with the Girl Scouts a perfect match for her experience, her training and that shared perspective.
Gizella joined Mass General Brigham Health Plan in 2017 as the Director of Account Management.  She has over 25 years of experience working for health insurance companies, both locally and nationally. Her focus has always been on the client retention side of sales, ensuring strategic partnerships with brokers and clients. As the Director of Account Management, she manages the large account management team and ensures the retention of large and key commercial accounts. In addition, she leads the Customer Advisory Board which allows clients to preview new products and programs and to provide feedback on current plans. Gizella previously served on the Board of Directors for YW Boston and its Advancement Committee. She graduated from Simmons College, majored in International Relations and French, and spent her junior year abroad in Paris. 
Karan is the Global Grooming Process & Engineering Vice President at Procter & Gamble - Gillette in South Boston. She is an accomplished engineering executive with vision and leadership insights in strategic planning, managing global programs, engineering innovation, technology master planning and new site construction. A champion for diversity and inclusion, her mission is to inspire and develop talent at all levels. She also serves as the P&G Director of Campus Recruiting at Tuskegee University, where she has personally recruited hundreds of diverse students for both full time and summer intern positions across Procter and Gamble. She is a strong supporter and member of SWE (Society of Women Engineers) and an advocate for girls and women in STEM. She is a co-sponsor of P&G’s Global Women in Engineering and co-founder of the African Ancestry Executive Women Leaders Team. She is a member of The Partnership C-Suite Program in Boston MA, the Massachusetts Business Round Table Board, and Cincinnati American Red Cross Board. In 2022 Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts honored Karan with a Leading Women Award for her commitment to the advancement of women in leadership. Karan was inducted into the State of Alabama Engineering Hall of Fame in 2024. She received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Tuskegee University. Karan joined the Board of Directors in 2023.
Teresa is formerly a partner in the Financial Services Practice of A.T. Kearney Inc., currently on hiatus from consulting to focus on family, real estate investing, and women’s entrepreneurship. With over two decades in the financial services industry, as both a consultant and senior manager at major retail financial services institutions, Teresa is known for her strategic visioning and ability to assist her clients with navigating the rapidly evolving digital financial services, data privacy, and consumer shopping landscape. Through her multi-year groundbreaking consumer research in digital financial services, and industry experience working with major banks, brokerage firms, payments companies, and digital fintech providers, she is able to develop and deliver impactful strategies to clients seeking to compete and win in the rapidly-evolving digital marketplace. In addition to her industry and consulting experience, Teresa has also been an entrepreneur. Co-founding and leading a boutique strategy consulting firm, Mercatus, she focused on developing revenue growth and new product innovation strategies for major banks, wealth management, and payments companies. Mercatus was acquired by AlixPartners in 2011. Teresa has an MBA from the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business Administration, and earned her undergraduate degree from Cornell University. Teresa has been widely quoted in the press including The American Banker, The New York Times, Bank Investment Consultant News, Businessweek Online, BAI Banking Strategies Magazine, and others. In addition, she is a member of the University of Virginia Darden School’s Diversity Advisory Council. Teresa joined the Board of Directors in 2019.
Trevor is a Research Analyst at Wellington Management, where he conducts fundamental analysis on healthcare equities. Prior to joining Wellington in 2024, Trevor was a Research Analyst at Boston Partners Global Investors, where he conducted fundamental analysis and ran a portfolio sleeve of international healthcare equities. Prior to joining Boston Partners in 2015, Trevor did fundamental equity research on a variety of industries for Highfields Capital, and he started his career doing quantitative equity research for MDT Advisers (now a subsidiary of Federated Investors). He is a CFA® charterholder. He has served as a Non-Resident Tutor in Economics for Pforzheimer House at Harvard College and has regularly guest-lectured and judged on investing and negotiation for graduate investment classes at MIT Sloan. He also lectures regularly for the Diversity Investment Management Engagement program. Trevor holds an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management and graduated from Harvard College with an AB (magna cum laude) in economics with a secondary field in mathematical sciences. Trevor joined the Board of Directors in 2020.  
Michelle is the Executive Vice President, Head of Corporate Affairs of Citizens Financial Group (CFG).  She has held many leadership roles within several functions including Communications, Marketing, Corporate Strategy, Consumer Banking and Human Resources during her 20-year tenure at Citizens. In partnership with banking industry group BAI, she led the establishment of the Executive Communications Roundtable and served as their chairperson for its 2018 inaugural year. In 2019 and 2020, Hecht was recognized as a Top Woman in Communications by PR Daily. Michelle leads the bank’s extensive corporate responsibility efforts through a team of diverse leaders who oversee public affairs, strategic partnerships, corporate sponsorships, charitable giving, and volunteerism. In 2023, under her leadership, Citizens invested more than $20 million in the communities it serves, and Citizens colleagues logged an impressive 232,000 hours of volunteer service. Michelle is President of the Citizens Charitable Foundation Board and the Citizens Philanthropic Foundation Board and a member of the Citizens Executive Leadership Group.
Guilda is an award-winning digital marketing thought leader and the Director of Product Marketing at Salesforce. She brings more than 20+ years’ experience in marketing technology, including roles within digital marketing operations, training, platform migration/ implementation, and consulting. In her current role, she is responsible for leading global community programs, such as the 500+ Members Global Marketing Program, which rewards and recognizes top community experts and advocates for their ongoing contributions back to the marketing community. She is also responsible for building global community programs that make learning soft skills and hard skills accessible to everyone; from the business executive striving for success, to the job seeker looking for a tech job, to the student fresh from graduation. She is also passionate about diversity and inclusion in digital marketing. Her passion is to mentor and coach the younger generations towards careers in digital technology. She is an active mentor and speaker at Bentley University. Guilda believes in giving back to the community and is active in many organizations and a mentor. She serves on the ANA Email Experience Board and Bentley Global Alumni Board. She has volunteered for many local organizations, including The Greater Boston Food Bank, Pine Street Inn and WGBH. Guilda earned her BS from Bentley University and completed the Women’s Executive Leadership Program. She is a graduate Fellow of The Partnership, Inc. Leadership Development Program. She joined the Board of Directors in 2022.
David is Chief Information Officer for Sprinklr, the industry-leading customer experience management (CXM) platform. He has 20 years’ experience managing business and IT transformations for global technology and financial services companies, including athenahealth, Fidelity, State Street, and Citigroup. David has a strong connection to charitable organizations that support the health and well-being of at-risk children, such as Boston Children’s Hospital, St. Jude Research Hospital, and Massachusetts Department of Children & Families. David received a BS in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of Connecticut. He holds a Master of Science in electrical engineering (robotics concentration) from the California Institute of Technology, and a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration. He joined the Board of Directors in 2022.
Amina serves as Head of Culture, Engagement & HR Business Excellence, Global Manufacturing, Supply & Quality at Takeda. In her 17 years at Takeda her career has steadily progressed from Engineering, Business Operations, Integration, and Program Management roles in Process Development and Global Manufacturing, Supply & Quality. Amina began her professional career in her home country of Trinidad & Tobago as a Petroleum Engineer at the Ministry of Energy, where she worked with multinational energy companies operating in the region. Amina has demonstrated her passion and commitment to gender parity through her volunteer work internally at Takeda as Global Co-Lead and US Region Lead of their Gender Parity Network ERG, and externally with the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association (HBA) and The Boston Club. She has previously held local and regional roles with HBA New England, now Chairs HBA’s Global Ambassador program, overseeing leadership development programs at over 50 corporate partner locations worldwide, and has co-chaired The Boston Club’s Healthcare and Life Sciences Affinity Group. Amina was named a 2022 HBA Rising Star at Takeda in recognition of her leadership and impact. She has been a Co-Leader and Cookie Coordinator for her daughter’s Girl Scout Troop for the past two years. Amina holds a BSc in Chemical & Process Engineering from the University of the West Indies, an MS in Microbial Engineering from the University of Minnesota, and an MBA in Finance and  International Management from Boston University.
Mary is the former Vice President of Product Development at SS&C Advent Software, a leading global provider of investment and financial services software for asset, wealth and hedge fund managers. During her 18 years with SS&C Advent, she held leadership roles in product and general management where she championed business process optimization, focus, and strategy execution around the development and delivery of investment accounting software systems.  Throughout her 30-year career she has led global teams, overseen multiple business transformations, implemented best practices within newly acquired businesses, and led business strategy and operations. Prior to joining SS&C Advent, Mary consulted for BNY Mellon and held various roles in relationship management, project management and fund accounting at Thomson Reuters and Deutsche Bank.  Passionate about helping others, today Mary is focused on caregiving for a loved one and supporting young women and girls in finance and STEM.  She mentors teens with Invest in Girls, Inc., is a 20-year volunteer for the DCF Wunderfund, and recently completed nine years of service as the treasurer of her daughters’ Girl Scout troop. She is a member of CHIEF, a leadership network for executive women.  Mary graduated from the College of the Holy Cross with a BA in economics and holds an MBA in International Business from Boston UniversityMary is the former Vice President of Product Development at SS&C Advent Software, a leading global provider of investment and financial services software for asset, wealth and hedge fund managers. During her 18 years with SS&C Advent, she held leadership roles in product and general management where she championed business process optimization, focus, and strategy execution around the development and delivery of investment accounting software systems.  Throughout her 30-year career she has led global teams, overseen multiple business transformations, implemented best practices within newly acquired businesses, and led business strategy and operations. Prior to joining SS&C Advent, Mary consulted for BNY Mellon and held various roles in relationship management, project management and fund accounting at Thomson Reuters and Deutsche Bank.  Passionate about helping others, today Mary is focused on caregiving for a loved one and supporting young women and girls in finance and STEM.  She mentors teens with Invest in Girls, Inc., is a 20-year volunteer for the DCF Wunderfund, and recently completed nine years of service as the treasurer of her daughters’ Girl Scout troop. She is a member of CHIEF, a leadership network for executive women.  Mary graduated from the College of the Holy Cross with a BA in economics and holds an MBA in International Business from Boston University.
Kim serves as an audit partner and leader of the commercial audit practice with Ernst &Young in Boston with over 25 years of experience serving multi-national, high-growth companies, including life sciences, technology, and professional services companies. Kim began her career in the Boston office of Arthur Andersen and joined Ernst & Young’s Boston office in 2002. She has extensive experience working with companies on their revenue models (including multiple element arrangements), financing and acquisition plans, and involvement with numerous IPOs and secondary financings. Kim is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accounts (AICPA) and the Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants (MSCPA). Within her community, Kim has served as Vice Chair of the United Way Women United Leadership Council and a member of the United Way Global Women United Leadership Council. She earned her BS in accounting from Boston College. Kim joined the Board of Directors in 2020.
Kristen is a Partner in Ernst & Young’s Boston Financial Services Office, with 20 years of experience in providing assurance and advisory services to a variety of financial services clients, with a focus on health, life and property and casualty insurance companies. In addition to conducting audits, Kristen has worked on a number of special projects at insurance companies, including initial public offerings, business process improvement projects, SOX/404 implementations, transaction advisory engagements, and support with examinations on behalf of state insurance departments. Kristen has developed and led educational trainings, is an active participant in the firm’s recruiting efforts, has served on the Corporate Social Responsibility Sub-Committee, and is a member of the firm’s Professional Women’s Network. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants. Kristen graduated from the College of the Holy Cross with a BA in accounting and economics. She joined the Board of Directors in 2022.
Gena is a Partner in PwC’s Trust solutions practice. She has more than 16+ years of experience advising companies on data, operational and technology controls and performing audits and assessments. She is a leading specialist in SOC 1, 2 and 3, and other third party assurance and internal controls reporting, providing services to our largest financial services clients designed to identify, assess, and manage complex risk and control issues across the enterprise – whether they are strategic, financial, systems, or operational in nature. In addition, Gena advises global clients on their Human Capital and DEI strategies, including how to navigate their sustainability reporting journey, with a specific focus on evolving and leading ESG frameworks. She is an inclusive, empathetic leader driving diversity, equity and inclusion with passion and dedication. She is the Purpose & Inclusion Co-Champion of the Boston, Hartford, and Albany offices of PwC. In this leadership role, Gena is responsible for driving the culture of inclusion for more than 3,500 professionals. Gena graduated cum laude from Bryant University with a Concentration in Accounting and a Minor in Psychology. She is a licensed CPA in Massachusetts as well as a Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA). Gena joined the Board of Directors in 2022.