She is passionate about education as a catalyst for change, bringing private sector principles to social sector actors, and systems level interventions for socioeconomic mobility. Prior to joining Education Matters, Maria-Victoria worked as an Engagement Manager at McKinsey & Company as part of their Social, Healthcare, and Public Entities (SHaPE) practice, supporting large scale economic development projects in the Heartland of the United States, with a focus on competitive applications for federal funds submitted to the U.S. Economic Development Administration. Collectively, she has helped her clients win over $100M USD for tech-led economic development projects. She holds a BA in History and Government from Harvard University. Maria-Victoria is passionate about living life at 100%, and lives to dance, laugh with anyone, and document the extraordinarily ordinary day to day. She loves languages, and speaks English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, a bit of Russian and a bit of French--she is excited to learn Shona while in Zimbabwe. .