Meet Our Team
Career Design
Diane Ciarletta
Diane Ciarletta
Director, Career Design She/Her/Hers
Diane Ciarletta has several decades of experience working at Northeastern University. After early career forays into special education, television production, human resources, and school counseling, she found that career coaching aligned best with her desire to do mission-driven work. She completed a BA in English and Psychology at Wheaton College and an M.Ed in Counseling and a Certificate in School Counseling at Northeastern. In fact, her entire family, including her husband and three kids, are all Northeastern Huskies! Her top strengths are empathy, positivity, and arranger. Her life design includes volunteering in her community, reading, interior decorating, and spending time with family.
Alyssa Devlin
Alyssa Devlin
Career Advisor, Career Design She/Her/Hers
Alyssa Devlin found her way to Northeastern after working in the healthcare sector for 5 years, where she found her passion for supporting students in their higher education journeys and career pursuits, especially first-gen students. Alyssa holds a B.S. in Public Health Sciences from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, with a focus in mental health. Her top strengths are relator, achiever, futuristic, and learner. Her life design includes practicing and teaching yoga in her community, crocheting, baking, going to concerts, and spending time in nature with her rescue dog, Luna.
Kate Famulari
Kate Famulari
Associate Director, Career Design She/Her/Hers
Kate Famulari took a circuitous route to arrive in career services. After practicing law for 10 years, she began exploring other possibilities. She did an informational interview with the Career Services office at NU, was accepted as an intern, and essentially never left! Kate has a B.A. in English from UMass Boston, a JD from Suffolk University Law School, a graduate certificate in Healing with the Express Arts from Salve Regina University, and various other trainings related to career design. Her top strengths are context, intellection, and input, typical strengths for an introvert. Kate’s life design includes collecting colorful glass bottles and making greeting cards for family and friends.
Amorette Farkas
Amorette Farkas
Career Advisor, Career Design She/Her/Hers
Amorette Farkas has been working in higher education and various student services roles for the past 7 years. Her affiliation with the Career Counselor’s Consortium and the Career Design Mentorship program allowed her to discover and lean into her desire to advise students in navigating their career paths. She earned her B.A. in Psychology from James Madison University and an Ed.M. in Higher Education Administration from Boston University. Amorette is passionate about working with students to help instill belief in their own potential and this led her to obtain a certification as a Gallup CliftonStrengths coach, where she guides individuals on how they can leverage their strengths to become the best version of themselves. Her top strengths are Empathy, Developer, and Connectedness. Her life design includes practicing yoga, taking nature walks, and spending time with her husband and the rest of her family.
Diana Ghattas-Antony
Diana Ghattas-Antony
Assistant Director, Career Design She/Her/Hers
Diana Ghattas-Antony is a proud Northeastern alumna and a former Career Design intern. Her career path includes teaching, school counseling, and government. Diana found that career coaching aligned best with her desire to empower learners of all backgrounds through the process of lifelong learning, and she enjoys delivering innovative interdisciplinary programs. Diana completed a B.A. in Political Science at the University of Massachusetts Boston and a M.Ed. in Higher Education at Northeastern University. Her top strengths are achiever, developer, empathy, and responsibility. Her life design includes volunteering in her community, event planning, arts and crafts, biking, reading, cooking, baking, interior decorating, and spending time with her husband, three children, and large extended family.
Anne Grieves
Anne Grieves
Associate Director, Career Design She/Her/Hers
Anne Grieves has been at Northeastern University for nine years, with prior experience at the International Education Institute and Wheaton College. While at Elderhostel (now Road Scholar) as an in-house trainer, she became a certified Myers-Briggs Type Indicator facilitator, which was her springboard into career coaching. She earned her B.A. in Sociology from Skidmore College and an M.A. in Higher Education Administration from Teachers College, Columbia University. Anne’s passion for helping individuals to uncover possible career paths led her to become a certified Gallup CliftonStrengths coach and implement a strengths-based coaching model. Her top strengths are Positivity, Woo, and Ideation. Her two teenage daughters, husband, and dog form the joyful center of her life design.
Mary Sullivan
Mary Sullivan
Associate Director, Career Design She/Her/Hers
Mary Sullivan brings years of career development experience in higher education at various Boston area institutions. Prior, she lived and worked in the Dominican Republic, motivating her to travel to Central and South America. She then pursued an M.A. Degree in Intercultural Relations from Lesley University, as well as an M.S. Degree in College Student Development and Counseling from Northeastern University. She earned her B.S. Degree in Economics from Suffolk University. Her interest in career design stems from her desire to assist individuals with challenging career decisions. Her top strengths are adaptability, connectedness, and maximizer, and her life design includes spending time with family and friends and travel.
Steven David Torres Ed.D
Steven David Torres Ed.D
Associate Director, Career Equity and Inclusion He/Him/His
Steven David is a Flight Attendant turned Learning Innovator. After working four years as a Flight Attendant, Steven David hung up his wings and returned to working in higher education. Inspired by the non-traditional students he served, in 2013, he returned to the University of Arizona after an eight-year absence and finished his bachelor’s degree. After finishing this degree and being motivated to help adults learn, Steven David earned his Master of Science degree in Instructional Design and Technology from The University of Tampa. During this program, he focused on program evaluation, learner motivation, and human performance. Recently, he completed his Doctor of Education at Columbia University’s Teachers College in Adult Learning and Leadership, where his research interests included adult development and learning within traumatic spaces, collective intelligence, and coaching. His top strengths include Futuristic, Relator, Ideation, and Analytical.
Sarah Valerio
Sarah Valerio
Operations Assistant, Career Design She/Her/Hers
Sarah Valerio has worked with elementary-aged students and has specialized in supporting students with disabilities. Her interest in working for Career Design stems from her interest in helping others. Sarah supports the team by managing the Photo Booth program, overseeing events, and working behind the scenes tech and marketing. Her top strengths are woo, communication, and empathy and her life design includes cooking, playing games, thrifting, and bead working.
Ellen Zold Goldman
Ellen Zold Goldman
Senior Associate Director, Career Design She/Her/Hers
Ellen Goldman brings her love of different cultures and a longtime fascination with the world of work, helping others design their own career adventures. Her background includes volunteering with refugees, overseas travel, and internships in a women’s center, television production, and constituent affairs. She’s a Northeastern Husky with an M.Ed in College Student Development and Counseling and a B.S. in Developmental Psychology from Suffolk University. Her top strengths are connectedness, individualization, and empathy. Her life design includes participating in creative Airbnb virtual experiences, watercolor painting, reading fiction based in other cultures, and time spent with family and friends.
Employer Engagement
Sumana Northover
Sumana Northover
Director, Employer Engagement
As Director of the Talent Engagement Team at Northeastern University, Sumana oversees talent acquisition programs, platforms and strategies for expanding full time and internship pathways across academic programs, disciplines, and colleges for learners. Sumana partners with organizations, both domestic and global, in creating talent pipelines for early career, graduate and doctoral learners through existing programs and initiatives while building new engagement opportunities that bring learners and organizations together. DEI recruiting is an area that Sumana leads as part of her team, and she is passionate about helping to build a diverse and inclusive workforce. Sumana is a Husky and received her B.A. in Business Management from Clark University, MEd from Northeastern in Education/Higher Education Administration and is currently in the Doctoral program for Education at Northeastern.
Bob Blanchette
Bob Blanchette
Associate Director, Employer Engagement
As the Associate Director for Global Employer Engagement, Bob is dedicated to providing client companies with the brightest and best talent drawn from our culturally rich and diverse international student population, and to providing our students with rewarding career opportunities that bring value to both our client companies and our students. In addition, Bob fosters client partnerships to help provide solutions to a variety of their talent development needs.
Lara Petersen
Lara Petersen
Associate Director, Employer Engagement
As Associate Director for the Talent Engagement team, Lara Petersen manages and oversees the Virtual Externship Program, a 4-week experiential course for pre-matriculated graduate students. Before coming to Northeastern, Lara worked for an international exchange student program and spent three years working in Japan. She received her Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics from the University of Massachusetts, Boston, and her Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from Soka University of America.
Cassandra LeBrun
Cassandra LeBrun
Assistant Director, Employer Engagement
As Assistant Director of Recruiting and Employer Engagement, Cassandra LeBrun manages the coordination and marketing of employer programs such as Employer Connection Sessions, Coffee Chats, and other employer events designed to enhance recruiting strategies at Northeastern. Cassandra is an individual who thrives in diverse communities and cultivates leadership. She has a strong background in leading many Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives in her previous role as Human Resources Coordinator. Cassandra received a certificate from Boston University’s Nonprofit Management and Leadership Program and is dedicated to building and connecting strong communities.
Kristin Downing
Kristin Downing
Recruiting Coordinator
As Recruitment Coordinator of Talent Engagement, Kristin Downing manages the logistics of employer programs such as Talent Connect, Employer Coffee Chats, and other employer sessions at Northeastern.
Experiential Network (XN)
Laura Engel
Laura Engel
Director the Experiential Network (XN), Employer Engagement EdD She/Her/Hers
Laura leads the strategic implementation of experiential projects sponsored by our university corporate partners within academic coursework, ensuring academic outcomes and real industry content alignment. She manages a team of university relationship managers and faculty consultants in the sourcing and embedding of virtual, experiential projects into Northeastern’s academic programs and courses. Prior to coming to Northeastern, Laura’s scholarly and professional focus centered around accessible experiential opportunities with heightened career impact for students at the graduate, undergraduate, and pre-college levels. The first XN pilot began in Summer 2015. With Laura coming on as the dedicated partnership manager a few months later, XN’s reach scaled from a handful of students, partners, and projects to over ten thousand students and two thousand sponsoring organizations to date. Laura holds a Doctor of Education degree from Northeastern in Curriculum, Teaching, Learning, and Leadership.
Rochelle Higgins
Rochelle Higgins
Employer Relations Manager the Experiential Network (XN), Employer Engagement She/Her/Hers
Rochelle Higgins (she/her/hers)
As an Employer Relations Manager on the XN team, Rochelle oversees a portfolio of programs including Global Studies and International Relations, Data Analytics, Regulatory Affairs, Bio-Informatics, and many more. Rochelle supports Northeastern University faculty members as they embed project work directly into their course curricula. Rochelle holds a BA in Healthcare Administration and Business Management from American International College and an MS in Global Studies and International Relations from CPS. She is enrolled in the Doctor of Law and Policy program at Northeastern. Rochelle previously worked at the D’Amore McKim School of Business. Before joining Northeastern University, she lived abroad for several years, working in the Education and Health fields in China and Eastern Europe. She later served in the Peace Corps in a small village named Costești in Moldova. Rochelle has a strong passion for Racial Equity and Justice and uplifting the voices of underrepresented populations.
Liza Littenberg-Tobias
Liza Littenberg-Tobias
Experiential Partnership Manager the Experiential Network (XN), Employer Engagement She/Her/Hers
As an Experiential Partnership Manager on the XN team, Liza oversees embedding experiential projects in a portfolio of business and health science undergraduate and graduate programs predominately in the College of Professional Studies and the College of Science. Liza helps to establish opportunities for employers to collaborate with Northeastern faculty and students to embed project work directly into course curricula. Before joining the XN team, Liza worked in Boston area K-12 schools running college and career readiness programming specifically focused on creating opportunities for underrepresented students to engage in internships, jobs and college preparation programs. Liza holds a BA in Education History and Policy from Brown University.
Jennifer Reyes
Jennifer Reyes
Employer Relations Manager the Experiential Network (XN), Employer Engagement She/Her/Hers
As an Employer Relations Manager on the XN team, Jenn oversees a diverse portfolio of Technology, Organizational Leadership, and Education programs. Jenn helps to establish opportunities for employers to collaborate with Northeastern faculty and students to embed project work directly into course curricula. Before joining the XN team in early 2020, Jenn worked in several education and workforce development roles throughout the Boston area. Jenn holds a BA in History and Child Development, as well as an MA in Teaching from Tufts University and is deeply passionate about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
Praggya Rustagi Barretto
Praggya Rustagi Barretto
Employer Relations Manager the Experiential Network (XN), Employer Engagement She/Her/Hers
As an Employer Relations Manager on the XN team, Praggya matches academic courses and expert faculty with aligned industry partners and their real-world, project-based needs. Prior to joining the XN team, she worked at the D’Amore-McKim School of Business in the Graduate Career Center as the Recruiting Manager. Praggya holds a BA in Psychology from Bryn Mawr College and is enrolled in the MS in Human Resources program at CPS. Before working at Northeastern University, Praggya worked for 16 years in finance and start-ups in the Boston area.
Susan Sabado-Glaser
Susan Sabado-Glaser
Employer Relations Manager the Experiential Network (XN), Employer Engagement She/Her/Hers
As an Employer Relations Manager on the XN team, Susan will oversee and align portfolios of XN project opportunities through extracurricular courses. Susan looks forward to fostering relationship opportunities with external industry sponsors and collaborating with Faculty and students to embed project work directly into course curricula. Before joining the XN team, Susan worked in Medical Sales, and Human Resources/Finance. Susan holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Clinical Nutrition. She is passionate about Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Justice. She was a committee member for the Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Justice (EDIJ) for the College of Science.
Strategic Industry Relations
Jim Boyle
Jim Boyle
Director, Employer Engagement
As Director in Northeastern University’s Department of Employer Engagement & Career Design, Jim oversees the team which develops and implements strategic talent acquisition & workforce solutions for employer-organizations. From entry-level candidate sourcing, to cooperative education partnerships, to complex learning & development collaborations, Jim is driving efforts to build unique engagements for the benefit of students, the university, and the employer community. Prior to joining Northeastern he held roles with the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, the Massachusetts Legislature, and the Port of New Bedford, respectively. Jim received his JD from the Massachusetts School of Law at Andover and his BA from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth.
Alane De Luca
Alane De Luca
Director, Employer Engagement
As Director of Global Employer Engagement, Alane is responsible for lead generation and partnership development in Asia, Middle East, North (Canada) and South America, United Kingdom and Ireland. Alane supports the London, Toronto, and Vancouver campuses along with establishing new global co-op opportunities through collaboration with Northeastern’s vast international network. Alane’s passion for global experiential learning began when she was a volunteer in the United States Peace Corps and stationed in rural Senegal, where she worked alongside NGOs and international organizations throughout Western Africa. Upon returning to the states, she assumed a position funded by USAID focusing on initiatives set forth by the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation and administered at Northeastern. She has also directed global and experiential learning programs at Merrimack College, Salem State University, Suffolk University Law School, and Saint Anselm College. Alane holds an M.Ed. from Northeastern University and a B.A. from The College of the Holy Cross. She resides in North Andover and has two children both enrolled in the D’Amore McKim School of Business at Northeastern.
Administrative
Marlene Amato
Marlene Amato
Executive Assistant, Employer Engagement and Career Design
Employer Engagement and Career Design Office