Meet the Team

Frank Fessenden (he/him) is the Executive Director of Corporate Relations at Brandeis International Business School. In his role, Frank oversees the Career Strategies and Engagement team to provide opportunities for student-employer engagement, raise the profile of the school in the employer community, and prepare students for successful careers.

Frank brings more than 25 years experience building successful partnerships in business and higher education. Early in his career, Frank served as Director of the career centers at Boston College and Brandeis University, providing comprehensive career services to undergraduate and graduate students. In those roles, his focus was on growing jobs and internships,  expanding alumni engagement through innovative programming, and implementing strategic technology solutions to advance student careers and connect students with prospective employers.

For the last 15 years, Frank has held leadership roles in various Edtech and consulting firms, including as Vice President of Business Development at Interfolio and Edgework Consulting, and as Managing Director at Academic Partnerships. His primary focus was on building deep partnerships between universities and businesses, creating and executing business development strategies, and engaging individual stakeholders at all levels of the partnerships.

Julie Miller (she/her) joined the Career Strategies and Engagement team in 2018 with more than 20 years of experience in industry and higher education. Under Julie’s leadership, the Career Strategies team develops dynamic career programs and education for graduate business students and alumni throughout their time at Brandeis and beyond.  

Julie thinks like a recruiter, a career advisor and a product manager, and those perspectives inform the career programming developed at Brandeis International Business School. Julie’s career experience is equal parts corporate and business school: Systems Engineer at IBM, Product Director at Monster, and Executive Recruiter with a boutique executive search firm; MBA Career Services at Boston College (Director) and Babson College (Assistant Director), and MBA Admissions Reader/Interviewer at MIT Sloan. She is happiest when collaborating with students and colleagues to ensure a robust student experience.   

Julie received her BS in Mathematics with Computer Coordinate from Trinity College (CT) and her MA in Higher Education Administration from Boston College, and she is an active member of MBA Career Services and Employer Alliance. When she’s not at Brandeis, Julie enjoys being outdoors with her family, watching ‘80s movies, discovering new books and hosting impromptu parties, and she has been known to eat dessert after every meal!

Marcia Katz (she/her) started her business career at Coopers & Lybrand (PwC), where she was a Supervisor on the Audit Staff.  As a consultant for the Boston Management Consortium, she worked in the Teaming for Change Project at the Boston Public Library and the Strategic Planning and Community Mobilization Project for the Boston Police Department. 

Marcia was an Adjunct Associate Professor at the Simmons College School of Management, where she received her MBA. At Brandeis International Business School, she created the first ever “for credit” career course for graduate students: Launching Your Global Career.  Marcia has received two “Excellence in Teaching” awards from teaching the course. 

As Director of Career Development and Alumni Engagement, Marcia coaches and advises graduate business students, develops and maintains recruiting relationships with alumni and employers, and provides a leadership role within the department. She is a member and has held leadership roles in local and national Career organizations: Boston MA/MBA Career Consortium and MBA Career Services and Employer Alliance.

Rachel Wasdyke (she/her) has been a proud member of the Career Strategies and Engagement (CSE) team at Brandeis International Business School since 2016. As Director of Corporate Engagement & Strategic Communications, Rachel and her Engagement team members connect students, employers and alumni through professional-development tools and programs, networking events and employment opportunities. Rachel leads the International Business School’s popular Industry Trek Program and was the recipient of the 2018 Distinguished Staff Service Award for her positive contributions to the school. She is also an MBACSEA committee member, helping represent Brandeis as part of a global alliance of graduate business career management professionals and employers, and has previously taught Management Communication at the business school. 

Rachel started her career in the publishing industry, where she worked for more than a decade in roles at Bloomsbury Publishing, Hachette Book Group and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, driving public relations strategies and implementing marketing campaigns for New York Times best-selling and award-winning authors. She holds her BA in English from Colby College and MS in Mass Communication from Boston University’s College of Communication, where she has taught communication writing for many years. In her free time, Rachel enjoys reading, travel and cooking and welcomes conversations about all three anytime! 

Jennifer Voldins CFA’s background includes foreign exchange roles at Bank of New York Mellon and Barclays Capital, with early trader/analyst experience at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Jennifer was a longtime Exam Question Writer and Associate Coordinator for the CFA Review Program at the CFA Society of Boston, and has had the pleasure of observing Brandeis International Business School students in the CFA Research Challenge in that capacity. Jennifer also has advised students one-on-one at Suffolk University as a professional tutor for finance and economics classes. Jennifer received her BS in Finance and French from University of Scranton, magna cum laude, and her MBA in Finance and International Business from Columbia University.

Sign up for “Weekly Finance Interview Practice with Jennifer” via the Thursday CSE Newsletter!

Sonia Liang (she/her) joined Brandeis International Business School from the Hiatt Career Center at Brandeis University, where her focus was career coaching for international students and alumni. Sonia actively created strategic partnerships for students through targeted programming, campus outreach and employer relations efforts, and she spearheaded a series of initiatives which led to the Hiatt Center receiving the National Career Development Association (NCDA) 2019 “Service to International Students” award. Sonia received her B.A. in English from Sun Yat-sen University in her hometown of Guangzhou, China, and held management positions in study-abroad consulting companies in China in her early career. Prior to joining Brandeis, Sonia was an intern at the College of Business Administration and served as an advocate for international students and scholars at Kent State University, where she received an M.Ed. in Higher Education Administration.

Ryan Olthoff (he/him) is the Assistant Director of Engagement for Brandeis International Business School.  He holds a master’s degree from the University of Michigan Sport Management program and has spent the majority of his career in the world of partnership and business engagement on behalf of colleges and universities.

His primary role at the business school is to provide students with access to internship and career opportunities that coincide with their current curriculum and long-term career aspirations.  With an extensive professional network spanning numerous industries, he is a great asset to help students begin their career search on the right foot.

Geri Brehm (she/her) is currently working with students at the Brandeis International Business School where she is the Senior Associate Director of Career Advising and Mentoring in their Career Strategy Center. Geri also has a private practice where she advises clients on their careers from both Fortune 500 companies as well as students just starting their careers. In her previous work she consulted to both professionals and organizations in the areas of organizational development, productivity improvement and leadership development. She specializes in helping individuals and organizations maximize their talents and abilities. Geri works with clients in the fields of technology, health care, manufacturing, accounting, finance, retail, publishing, government, and education. Geri’s expertise is diverse and includes coaching for leadership development, team building, problem solving, organizational analysis, program development, negotiating strategy development, and productivity improvement. 

Geri is an instructor at Boston University and has taught management and leadership skills to students for more than 20 years. Previously Geri also managed a medical student/ PhD mentoring program for biomedical science certificate students in Boston University Medical School’s CityLab Academy and has run Balient groups for Family Practice Residents. Geri Brehm earned her bachelor’s degree at Boston University and holds graduate degrees from Harvard and Columbia Universities. She has taught business courses and seminars on both the graduate and undergraduate levels and is currently an adjunct professor at Boston University. She assisted in the research and writing of the book Corporate Culture and co-edited the book Managing and Organizing for Change.

Sign up for “Weekly Case Practice with Geri Brehm” via the Thursday CSE Newsletter! 

Alice Ain Rich was the founding Human Resources Director at three technology companies (Kronos, Bitstream, and Dragon Systems/Nuance Communications) where she hired many international employees, and has served as a human resources consultant to a range of organizations.  She founded and has led her career coaching and corporate consulting business (www.coachalice.com) for more than 20 years working with almost 5,000 clients.  Alice is delighted to be working with the MBA students at Brandeis, having advised MBA/MSF and dual-degree students as a Senior Consultant to the Dean of the Carroll Graduate School of Management at Boston College in the past.  Alice received her BA in English from Vassar College where she also studied abroad at the University of London.

Natalie Warila (she/her) has been with the CSE Team since October of 2017.  She was initially hired through Beacon Hill Staffing Agency to assist the Engagement Team, but transitioned over to Career Strategies in April of 2018 due to her newfound love of student-facing activities and communications.  Her favorite contributions to the CSE are the weekly CSE Newsletter, the design of the Pre-Arrival LATTE Course and resume/cover letter guides, and the founding of the annual Present Yourself! Professional Presentation Week.

Previously, Natalie worked as a Marketing Assistant and Social Media Manager at the International in Bolton, a wedding and events destination, conference center, hotel, restaurant and golf club.

Natalie graduated from University of Massachusetts, Amherst, in February of 2017 with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology.  She is especially passionate about creative projects, despite having minimal artistic skills.  She is a freelance photographer and is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Digital Marketing and Design with RABB.  She also loves to read and is willing to discuss any tv show with anyone, anytime.

AnaPaula Gomes (she/her) has been with the CSE team since October 2018. Her favorite part of being the engagement coordinator is facilitating meaningful connections between students and employers through events hosted on campus and industry treks.

Prior to her position at the business school Anapaula worked for XebiaLabs, helping to enhance their social media presence and coordinate their marketing efforts.

Anapaula received her bachelor’s degree from Bentley University in 2018 and is currently pursuing her Master’s in digital marketing and design from Brandeis University.