Mary Vascellaro is an accomplished community leader in education, civic engagement and the arts.  She is a longtime champion of Brown alumnae who earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Brown in 1974.

Following a career in retail merchandising and management during which she was among the first women leaders in her role with organizations such as Filene’s and Lord and Taylor, Vascellaro became a volunteer nonprofit leader who served for 16 years on the Teach for America Bay Area advisory board, which she chaired. She was also the founding board chair for Generation Citizen, a national organization founded by Brown students to advance civic education and participation. 

At Brown, Vascellaro serves on the President’s Advisory Council of the Ruth J. Simmons Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice. For decades, she has championed engagement and mentorship among Brown alumnae, having served as a founding member of the Women’s Leadership Council and as chair of the Pembroke Center Associates Council. She also chaired the celebration of 120 years of women at Brown, which welcomed more than 500 alumnae from across the generations to campus in 2012. 

In addition to her degree from Brown, Vascellaro earned an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.