Trailblazing HBCU President, Global Tech Executive Join Board of Student Engagement Platform

BOSTON, Nov. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Boston-based Mainstay, whose first-of-its-kind platform is used by hundreds of colleges and employers to drive engagement and facilitate empathetic communication, today announced the appointment of Michael Sorrell, President of Paul Quinn College, and Robin Mendelson, Senior Fellow at Harvard University's Advanced Leadership Initiative, to its board of directors. Both are recognized as groundbreaking leaders in their respective fields, and will help shape Mainstay's ongoing work to deploy behavioral intelligence at the intersection of education and employment.

"Our work is rooted in the idea that technology can play a transformative role in helping more people navigate the often-complex pathway through college and into their careers," said Drew Magliozzi, Co-Founder and CEO of Mainstay. "Robin's expertise as a technology executive and global business leader, and Michael's experience at the helm of one of the country's most forward-thinking colleges, will bring invaluable insight and perspectives to bear on our work with students and workers."

Michael Sorrell has served for almost 15 years as president of Paul Quinn College, which has become known across the country for its unprecedented work in service of under-resourced students and communities. He has been recognized as Higher Education's President of the Year by Education Dive; one of the World's 50 Greatest Leaders by Fortune; and one of America's 10 Most Innovative College Presidents by Washington Monthly.

"For those of us on the frontlines of the fight for socio-economic justice, the past eighteen months have further exposed the myriad of ways our society continues to fail the most fragile among us, those who have all too often been locked out of opportunity simply because of their zip code, gender, and/or race," said Sorrell. "Mainstay has been an instrumental part of the work to close these equity gaps, and their approach will continue to grow in importance as institutional leaders across many different sectors turn to emerging technology to address this ongoing challenge."

Robin Mendelson joined Harvard's Advanced Leadership Initiative in 2020. Prior to her Harvard fellowship, she held executive leadership positions at Amazon.com in finance and general management in the US and internationally, most recently leading Amazon's US Media Division.

"Effective communication is the foundation of the successful organization's efforts to serve its people," said Mendelson. "Mainstay has long recognized that fact and has built not only the technology platform to achieve this communication at scale—but also the critical empathetic approach needed to help more colleges and businesses better reach the workers and learners they serve."

Known for developing the pioneering AI technology that boosted enrollment at Georgia State University, Mainstay has helped colleges increase access, persistence, and success for more than 5 million students nationwide since its founding in 2014. Mainstay's platform is also used by a growing number of employers to remove barriers in hiring and enable more workers to pursue career opportunities. Through partnerships with colleges and universities, employers, state higher education systems like the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, and nonprofit organizations like the Common App and College Advising Corps, Mainstay designs campaigns and strategies designed to meet the unique needs of individual organizations.

About Mainstay

At Mainstay, we believe one conversation can spark a brighter future. That's why we've evolved the Engagement Platform we developed as AdmitHub to make it easy for colleges and businesses to start and measure conversations that drive action at scale. Everything we do – from our rigorous research methods to the ways we've built empathy and situational context into our conversational AI – is designed to help people take the next step toward achieving their goals.

SOURCE Mainstay