Spring 2012 - Georgetown University: Web hosting

MINI PROFILE ALUMNINotes
The Social Capitalist
During her sophomore year, Melissa Bradley-Burns
(BSBA ’89) was walking through the annual student
activities fair on Copley Lawn when one of her classmates
yelled, “What are you doing for your community?”
Bradley-Burns’ first response was dismissive. “I
tried to get out of it,” she says, explaining that her business school
course load didn’t leave her much time for other activities. Still, her
persistent classmate challenged her to find time for public service.
By the end of the conversation, Bradley-Burns had committed to
participate with the After School Kids Program — a commitment that
changed the course of her life.
When Bradley-Burns arrived at Georgetown, she was heading
toward a career on Wall Street. “I grew up in a single-parent household
and was the first person in my family to complete college,” she
says. “I wanted to be successful, make lots of money, and start my
own business.”
At the same time, however, the stock market was turning, and
Bradley-Burns’ volunteer work exposed her to a level of poverty she
had never before witnessed. “I considered myself poor growing up,”
she says, “but this was different. For me, a career on Wall Street was
not going to change these issues.”
In her first job after graduation, at Sallie Mae, Bradley-Burns realized
starting her own business would suit her more than working for
others. She went to the Small Business Administration to apply for a
loan, but met with more disappointment. “They said, you have three
strikes against you: You’re black, you’re 21, and you’re going into
financial service,” she remembers.
Realizing that an advanced degree would put her in a stronger
position to enjoy the salary and autonomy she sought as an entrepreneur,
Bradley-Burns decided to earn her MBA. At the same time,
she founded The Entrepreneurial Development Institute, which offered
Georgetown University McDonough School of Business
Melissa Bradley-Burns (BSBA ’89) splits
her time between San Francisco (shown
here), Bethesda, Md., and New York.
John Lee
skills training to underserved youth and their families. After school,
she established New Capitalist, a firm that invested in women- and
minority-owned companies.
“We filled a void of social capital and financial capital,” Bradley-
Burns says. “Venture capital is about people. And there’s a way
to make money while doing good.” The firm still exists today, and
Bradley-Burns remains on the board.
Next, Bradley-Burns created Reentry Strategies Institute, dedicated
to helping formerly incarcerated people reenter society. She
was selected as a Soros Justice Fellow for her innovation in
criminal justice.
After short policy stints at Green for All and the Center for American
Progress, Bradley-Burns was named CEO at Tides, a network
that provides fiscal sponsorship and donor services to individual and
institutional donors working in a wide range of issues. Some days
she supports high-worth donors; other days she works with startup
activists.
“What I do every day is social change and helping people,” she
says, “and that’s so reflective of the Jesuit approach at Georgetown.”
Bradley-Burns splits her time between Bethesda, Md., San
Francisco, and New York, where Tides also has offices. She and her
partner, Allessandra Bradley-Burns, also a Georgetown graduate,
have six children, including 4-year-old twins. In addition to serving on
the Georgetown University Alumni Association Board of Governors,
Bradley-Burns recently helped launch the Georgetown University
Entrepreneurship Alliance, and she served on the task force for the
LGBTQ Center. She relishes the chance to come to campus and
encourage students to find their passion.
Despite her many accomplishments, Bradley-Burns doesn’t view
herself as special. “I do think I’m a typical Hoya,” she says. “I bleed
Hoya blue.” —Melanie D.G. Kaplan
33