Alums Leading the Way
Mount Holyoke alums have been opening doors, breaking barriers and launching into the world as leaders since the founding of the College. Our graduates are leading the way — in the boardroom and in the classroom, in the lab and in public service, in the field and on the runway. Every day alums are lifting up others, calling out injustices and advocating for change.
Launching leadership
In celebration of the achievements of our alums and to highlight the many ways Mount Holyoke prepares its graduates to lead in the world, we present a conversation series between interim President Beverly Daniel Tatum and a diverse group of graduates. These alums exemplify an intellectually adventurous Mount Holyoke education in action. Their interviews will be posted to this page as soon as they are available.
Aimée Eubanks Davis ’95
Aimée Eubanks Davis ’95 is the founder of Braven, a startup that works to ensure underrepresented college students develop the life skills, confidence, experiences and networks that enable them to get strong first jobs after graduation. Named as one of America’s Best Startup Employers of 2022 by Forbes magazine, Braven is now operating in five cities and working with more than 3,300 students.
Suzan-Lori Parks ’85 and Debra Martin Chase ’77
Suzan-Lori Parks ’85 is the first Black woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, an award she received in 2002 for “TOPDOG/UNDERDOG.” In 2018, the play was named “The Greatest American Play of the Past 25 Years” by The New York Times. This unprecedented distinction was awarded unanimously by a special panel of critics convened to examine and rank the most important plays written and produced in the previous 25 years. Parks is also a recipient of the MacArthur Genius Grant and the Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize.
Tony Award-winning producer Debra Martin Chase ’77 is an entertainment industry trailblazer. She was the first Black woman to have a producing deal at a major movie studio, and her films have grossed more than a half billion dollars. She has a deal at Universal Television and executive produces CBS’ “The Equalizer.” Her numerous credits include “Harriet,” “The Princess Diaries” and “Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella.” In partnership with Marc Platt, she won a 2022 Tony for Best Musical for “A Strange Loop.”
Addison Beaux ’99
Addison Beaux serves as an executive leadership, strategic communication and management consulting asset. Before becoming a Silicon Valley entrepreneur, he served as a staffer to Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, speechwriter to the President and Board of Trustees at Stanford University, congressional liaison and speechwriter at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and lead researcher at the Center for Economic Integrity. Addison is trained as a child and family therapist and is also a celebrated storyteller and public speaker.

Charisse Pickron ’08 and Kira Banks ’00
Charisse Pickron ’08 is an assistant professor at the Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota Twin Cities. As the director of the Child Brain and Perception Lab, Charisse and her team examine the ways in which social experiences shape how infants and children perceive and represent people in their environment to better understand the way early experiences influence face perception and how young children begin to respond to and understand social constructs such as gender and race.
Kira Banks ’00 is co-founder of the Institute for Healing Justice and Equity at Saint Louis University, where she is a professor in the Department of Psychology. She also served as a racial equity consultant for the Ferguson Commission and continued as the Racial Equity Catalyst for Forward Through Ferguson. Her research, teaching and facilitation around equity, diversity and inclusion have helped frame racial equity in the St. Louis region and beyond.
Lessons in leadership
Mount Holyoke alums are leading in varied and nuanced ways and using their spheres of influence for good — through professional achievements, volunteer experiences, advocacy work, special passions/projects, and more. We want our community to hear these important stories.
Please use this form to share your story or to recommend a friend, classmate or colleague.
How will you make your mark?
Mount Holyoke alums have always blazed trails and challenged the status quo. Scientists. CEOs. Politicians. Entrepreneurs. Pulitzer-Prize winners. Oscar winners. And everything in between.

Umama Zillur
Class of 2018
Co-founder and leader of Kotha, an organization dedicated to ending the culture of gender-based violence in Bangladesh

Kaneka Turner
Class of 2016
Founder of educational consulting company ReImage

Veronika Kivenson
Class of 2013
Postdoctoral fellow at Oregon State University and recipient of the Tory Burch Fellowship from the Innovative Genomics Institute

Gabi Gregg
Class of 2008
Fashion blogger and designer and advocate for the representation of plus-size Black women in fashion spaces

Chloé Zhao
Class of 2005
The first woman of color to win an Academy Award for best director

Natasha Mohanty
Class of 2003
Head of engineering for checkout experiences at Stripe, a financial infrastructure platform

Rumbi Bwerinofa-Petrozzello
Class of 1994
The first woman of color to serve as president of the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants

Sheila Lirio Marcelo
Class of 1993
Entrepreneur and founder of Care.com

Tara Roberts
Class of 1991
2022 Rolex National Geographic Explorer of the Year

Mona Sutphen
Class of 1989
Partner and Head of Investment Strategies, The Vistria Group

Deborah Harkness, Ph.D.
Class of 1986
Best-selling fiction author, TV producer and professor of history

Suzan-Lori Parks
Class of 1985
First Black woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama

Holly Metcalf
Class of 1981
Top crew coach and champion in expanding access to the sport of rowing

Susan Kare
Class of 1975
Pioneer of pixel art and graphical computer interface

Wendy Wasserstein
Class of 1971
Tony-winning playwright and Pulitzer Prize winner

Barbara Smith
Class of 1969
Co-founder of the Combahee River Collective and co-author of the Combahee River Collective Statement

Janet Litster Rideout
Class of 1961
Organic chemist and patent holder of AZT

Nita Lowey
Class of 1959
U.S. Representative and the first woman to chair the House Appropriations Committee

Jean Sammet
Class of 1948
Co-developer of the computer programming language COBOL

Ella Grasso
Class of 1940
First woman elected U.S. state governor in her own right

Virginia Apgar
Class of 1929
Inventor of the Apgar Score for newborns

Frances Perkins
Class of 1902
First woman Cabinet member, U.S. Secretary of Labor and creator of Social Security

Emily Dickinson
Class of 1849
One of the greatest and most original poets of all time