Next50 is a student-led organization and Fellowship program at Tuck advocating for more diverse case protagonists in MBA curricula so that every student can see themselves in the business leaders they study.
It was founded in October 2020 by a small group of female Tuck students eager to see a more diverse set of leadership voices showcased in the classroom. Since then, we have expanded to a diverse team of 12 Fellows and 15 Associates who are working with Tuck faculty, administration, students, and alums to make Tuck a leader in diversifying the MBA casework and academic experience.
We support the goal that by 2025, 50% of case protagonists in the business cases taught in Tuck’s curriculum include gender, racial, and/or nationality diversity.
We hope to achieve this not only through the selection of cases taught throughout Tuck’s Core and elective curricula, but also through building infrastructure for the creation of original cases. As part of this effort, Next50 will be hosting Tuck’s first case-writing competition next year in Winter 2023.
Being able to see oneself in the business leaders we see, read, and learn about matters.
Not only do these case studies help us as students explore how to approach different challenges and opportunities, but they also help us imagine ourselves as future leaders who will confront similar challenges and opportunities as we progress in our careers.
Colleen Ammerman, Director of the Gender Initiative at Harvard Business School, wrote this in an article about why the gender gap in cases matters: “Cases send a broader message about what leadership looks like. When the leader archetype is very narrowly defined, it not only hinders the ability of students who don’t share those characteristics to identify with the protagonist, it also reinforces stereotypes about who ‘real leaders’ are.”
We are proud of what the Next50 team has accomplished in our first full year as an organization. Included in these accomplishments are the following:
Interested in the work Next50 is doing? We’d love to hear from you.
Co-Chair
Devu Nair grew up across three different countries, where she routinely felt parts of her identity were not mainstream or in some cases, even accepted. These experiences have made her passionate about DEI, so what excites her most about Next50 is the opportunity to address the DEI gap in our MBA education. Devu graduated from the University of Wisconsin and then worked as a Group Product Manager for Capital One. She currently works part-time as Head of Product for Finsie, a startup building the first online, national marketplace for Americans to easily access financial and investment advisors. Aside from product and DEI, Devu is also enthusiastic about human-centered design, coffee, whisky, and haikus.
Co-Chair
Prathyusha spent 7 years in the Analytics consulting industry prior to Tuck, working with Private equity clients and their portfolio companies across the consumer product and services space. Having grown up in India and worked in male-dominated firms, Prathyusha continuously challenged the stereotypes and quickly moved up the hierarchy. She was passionate and heavily involved in recruiting to improve diversity within her teams. At Tuck, through the Next50 initiative, she hopes to create a diverse curriculum that represents diversity in the real world.
Caroline Carey worked in technology sales prior to Tuck, working for 4 years at Tableau Software in Washington, DC. She came to Tuck with the goal of transitioning into the business side of health care which has been an interest of hers since she studied Biomedical Engineering for her undergraduate degree. Caroline worked at BCG in Boston in the Private Equity Group for her summer internship and will returning after graduation, hoping to focus in the health care space. On campus, Caroline runs the Tripod Hockey League, sings and plays piano in the Tuck Band, is a fellow in the Health Care Center, and is a Forte Fellow. Outside of her involvements on campus, Caroline enjoys skiing, running, and crossword puzzles.
Sansha is a first-year student at Tuck who is involved with several organizations that address inclusivity and DE&I, issues that she feels strongly about as an international student. She is the International Experience Chair (Student Board), Next50 DE&I Fellow, Co-Chair of the Admitted Students Weekend, and Co-Chair of Tuck Emerging Markets Conference. Prior to Tuck, Sansha pursued her CPA-equivalent degree in India, worked with Ernst and Young as a Consultant in the M&A Diligence practice, and with Alteria Capital as a Venture Debt Investor. She also spent 6 years volunteering and teaching across various non-profits in India. Apart from leadership and social impact, Sansha is also passionate about dance, and has trained in Bollywood, Jazz, and Contemporary. She is headed to McKinsey Seattle this Summer, and intends to pursue a career in Social Impact Consulting post-Tuck.
Prior to Tuck, Emily Fox Blau was a 4th grade teacher in the Lake County School District in Leadville, Colorado. After teaching, she served as the Dean of Students where she oversaw all aspects of student and staff culture. Emily worked at Johnson & Johnson for her MBA summer internship and will be moving to Denver after graduation to work as a consultant for Bain & Co. When Emily isn’t working on Next50, you can find her singing with the Tuck Band, interviewing prospective Tuckies, and serving as a non-profit board fellow for CBGS. Emily is passionate about community building, positive youth development, and finding teachable moments in everyday life.
Being born and lived exclusively in Mumbai, Shimoli felt that she had a rather homogeneous people and cultural experience. Prior to Tuck, she worked as a Senior Manager at Ernst & Young, Mumbai, and has a decade-long experience in M&A structuring. By participating in small group leadership push conversations and involvement with Next50, Shimoli seeks to personally challenge herself to familiarize and empathize with different cultures and backgrounds. As the first Next50 Case Competition Fellow, Shimoli’s goal is to lay the foundation for Case Writing Competition at Tuck School with a long-term vision to generate a repository of diverse and global business cases that can be adopted in the MBA curriculum.
Jasmine spent 6 years as a management consultant with Accenture, specializing in the Talent & Organization / Human Potential practice. Jasmine received her B.S. in Accountancy from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her passion to unite learning and social and cultural awareness remains at the forefront of her Tuck experience as Jasmine also serves on the student board as Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Chair. Outside of DE&I, Jasmine loves podcasting, reality TV, and reading black autobiographies.
Megan is a first year MBA/MPH student focused on Next50’s student and alumni engagement initiatives. Prior to Tuck, she worked in life sciences consulting, most recently with safety programs to ensure high-risk patients can safely receive vital medications despite serious potential side effects. Megan received her B.A. from Vanderbilt University in Neuroscience and Medicine, Health, & Society. Megan’s passion for supporting underserved and underrepresented populations is evident through her involvement in Tuck programs such as Next50, Forte, the Health Care Club, and Tuck Community Consulting.
Prior to Tuck, Sherry Yang worked in the healthcare industry focused on drug licensing, consulting and executing market entrance strategies in the US and emerging markets to reshape the perceptions of cannabis as a consumer retail product. Throughout her career journey, she has worked in male-dominated environment where proactively speaking out was not always met with positive reactions. Having lived through experiences like these, she wants to be involved in the Next50 initiative to add representation and diversity in the Tuck curriculum where we educated wise future business leaders.
Saleha Ahmed is a first-year student at Tuck and a Next50 Associate working with the Faculty Engagement Team. Saleha is Bay Area native and prior to Tuck, she was in San Francisco working in various roles in FinTech (specifically lending and loan servicing) for over 4 years. During her last role at a FinTech startup, Saleha was a part of the hiring committee for several departments, and she continuously (and successfully!) advocated for diverse hiring practices at her company. She is excited to work with her fellow Next50 members to strengthen the diversity initiatives both in and out of the classroom at Tuck. She holds B.A.s in both Economics and International Relations from Mills College.
Annie is a first-year student and Next50 Associate supporting its recruiting and organizational design work. Prior to Tuck, she worked on the acquisitions program and with the Board of Trustees at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. She received her A.B. from Dartmouth College in Art History.
Divya Bobra is a first-year student at Tuck and has over 5 years of work experience prior to business school. While she started her career in investment banking at JP Morgan, her passion for women empowerment drove her to join the non-profit sector, where she led implementation of “Internet Saathi,” a project promoted by Tata Trusts and Google for digital literacy of women in rural India. In her role prior to Tuck, she was Executive Assistant to the CEO of Tata Trusts, a role she says was almost an MBA before her MBA. Building Tuck’s first ever DEI focused case competition at Next50 excites her as much as birdwatching does.
Jess is a first-year student at Tuck and a Next50 Student Associate supporting the Case Competition workstream. Prior to Tuck, Jess worked in client service in the healthcare and information services industries. Jess is passionate about strengthening DEI at Tuck, and by extension, bringing stronger and more successful DEI initiatives to the business world through Tuck’s alumni. The majority of adults will spend 1/3 of their lives at work, and Jess believes strongly that everyone deserves the opportunity to build a career at an organization that values diversity, equity, and inclusion for all identities. Jess holds a B.A. in French Literature from Colgate University and enjoys reading and yoga in her free time.
Jillian is passionate about building and investing in new businesses that advance progress in sustainability and diversity. At Tuck, Jillian leads the Entrepreneurship and Food and Agriculture clubs. She is also a Director of the Tuck Social Venture Fund, a student-led VC fund that invests in early-stage impactful start ups.. Prior to business school, Jillian spent three years at PepsiCo, where she shaped Venturing and M&A strategy for the company’s hyper-growth eCommerce business and helped to build the company’s emerging brand incubator, The HIVE. A New Jersey native, Jillian spends much of her free time down the shore with her family. In her free time, she’s a passionate home cook, certified yoga teacher and ever-improving skiier. Jillian holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania.
Daphne is a first-year student at Tuck and a Next50 Associate. Prior to Tuck, she worked for 5+ years in brand marketing and product innovation across retail, restaurants, and consumer packaged goods. Alongside her professional experience, she mentored junior associates, onboarded new employees, and through these experiences developed a passion for cultivating diverse teams. She is a graduate of the University of Toronto.
Jordan Figueroa is a first-year student at Tuck and Next 50 Student Associate. Prior to Tuck, he worked as a structural engineer at Datum Engineers in Texas. He pushed for DEI at his work and was also the chair for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at the Young Men's Business League in Austin, TX. He holds a B.S. and M.S. from the University of Texas and enjoys training his dogs and playing guitar.
Ava Giglio is a first-year student at Tuck and Next50 Associate. Prior to Tuck, she worked at Disney in Consumer Insights & Analytics. While there, she was a member of the DEI Task Force that launched the first-ever ABC Inclusion Standards to promote diverse storytelling. Ava is passionate about improving representation in content, from media to MBA course curriculum. She holds a BA in Mathematics from Dartmouth College and in her free time enjoys spending time outside, reading nonfiction and watching movies.
Sam is a first-year student at Tuck and a Next50 Student Associate supporting the Student & Alumni Engagement workstream. A Southern California native, Sam earned a B.A. in Business Economics at UCLA and most recently worked in automotive consulting at J.D. Power. As an avid advocate for all things diversity and inclusion, Sam was super excited to hop into the Next50 space and help make our case studies, curriculum, and general academic environment more representative of the increasingly diverse workforce we are all preparing to reenter. Sam is particularly passionate about representing the LGBTQ+ voice and perspective in these conversations. In his free time, Sam enjoys snow skiing, road cycling, mountain biking, exploring Upper Valley restaurants and breweries, watching way too much reality TV, and playing with his nieces and nephews.
Seare was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia to Eritrean refugees who taught him at an early age the importance of intellectual curiosity and resiliency to overcome his humble upbringings. Growing up, he honed these skills to excel in soccer and particularly academics, which led him to Georgia State University where he received a BBA in Business Economics. He pursued a career in banking after graduation because he knew he would be challenged to grow professionally and personally. In his 9 years in banking, Seare was responsible for leading credit approval decisions for international companies and voluntary efforts addressing DEI. He hopes to leverage Tuck for a career in venture capital investing in the future. In his free time, he enjoys reading, community service and watching sports.
Destinée Mentor-Richards is a first-year student at Tuck from Brooklyn, NY. Prior to Tuck, she worked in various Innovation and Business Development roles at Morgan Stanley, Boeing, Anheuser-Busch, and Edward Jones. In addition to being a Next50 Associate, Destinée serves as the 1st year class president and a graduate student advisor for Dartmouth’s Presidential Commission on Financial Aid. She holds a B.A. in Mathematics from Amherst College and enjoys reading, singing, and sketch-comedy writing in her spare time.
Joanna is a first-year student at Tuck supporting the case writing framework workstream in Next50. Previously, she was a consultant at Accenture in Washington, DC. She graduated with highest honors from the University of Virginia with a double major in philosophy and Russian studies.
Elizabeth Raboy is a first-year student at Tuck and Next 50 Student Associate. Prior to Tuck, she worked as a growth manager at growth-stage companies, and before that as a management consultant in New York, NY. She is passionate about creating inclusive teams and gender equality in both the workplace and classroom. She holds a B.A. from NYU and enjoys hiking, skiing, and golfing in her spare time.
Sara is a second-year student at Tuck and is passionate about increasing representation within the Tuck curriculum. Prior to Tuck, Sara spent the past 8 years working in retail across buying, merchandising, and wholesale. She earned her B.A. from Hamilton College in History. Post-Tuck, Sara will be working at Bain and Company in their Chicago Office.
Carson spent most of his youth in rural Oklahoma before attending the University of Texas at Austin, a school with a student body three times larger than the entire population of his hometown. Before attending Tuck, he worked at large video game companies in San Francisco and Austin. Carson is deeply passionate about increasing all aspects of DEI in the gaming and tech industries – to that end, he serves on the board of Friendship Garden Game Developers, a nonprofit that provides scholarships, mentorship, and publicity for underrepresented video game developers. He currently works part-time as a product manager at Carry1st, the leading games publisher in Africa, and will be spending the summer at Riot Games.
Tabitha Bennett T’22, Co-chair
Gissell Castellon T’22, Co-chair
Lindsay Cox T’22, Co-chair
Katherine Britt T’21, Chair & Founding Fellow
Krishna Desai T’21, Founding Fellow
Monica McGreal T’21, Founding Fellow
Bridget Morton T’21, Founding Fellow
Jhanvi Jagad T’21, Founding Fellow
Anna Vaughn T’21, Founding Fellow