Young Alumni Board

Omid Shokoufandeh is the Vice President of Acquisitions at Abington Emerson Investments, LLC (“Abington Emerson”), a privately held real estate investment company focused on the acquisition, development, and management of value-add real estate. Headquartered in Los Angeles, he is responsible for sourcing and underwriting acquisition opportunities throughout the western United States, and advising the investment committee on all asset classes. Additionally, Omid manages the commercial development portfolio in Los Angeles, with over $50m in development scheduled to begin in 2020.

Omid graduated Cum Laude with a BA in Economics, Political Science and Philosophy from the University of Pennsylvania where he was a four-year letterman on the Varsity Men’s Soccer team and selected to Friars Senior Honor Society. Currently he is the President of the Penn Club of Los Angeles and a licensed real estate broker in the state of California.

Allison Hechtman is a Consumer Insights Researcher at Experian Health. Based in Miami, Florida, she manages Experian's Voice of the Customer program, which focuses on gathering and strategically implementing client feedback for various products and experiences. Allison graduated from the college in 2019 and has been involved with Penn Libraries Young Alumni Board ever since. In her free time, she is an avid skier and hiker.

She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Cognitive Science from the University of Pennsylvania and is also involved with the Penn Alumni Club of Miami.

Aparna Chandrasekhar currently serves as a Quality Management RN Specialist at the VA Boston Healthcare System. Prior to joining the public sector in early 2018, she dabbled in private sector work ranging from consulting at The Advisory Board to nursing, quality improvement, and nurse management at UCSF Medical Center and The Dimock Center. She graduated from Penn’s joint-degree Nursing/Health Care Management program in 2005 and obtained a Harvard public health master's degree in 2012. Aparna firmly practices the “work hard, play hard” motto and is an active Board member of the Longwood Symphony Orchestra, a violinist in the Harvard Musical Association Reading Orchestra, an avid and insatiable wanderlust (35+ countries thus far and also on a journey to visit each state in alphabetical order), and a member of multiple local book clubs run by the Boston Public Library.

Lorenza Colagrossi is an Associate at Alvarez & Marsal in their Private Equity Performance Improvement (PEPI) practice. She supports clients in both pre-acquisition due diligence and post-acquisition turnaround / performance improvement work. Prior to A&M, she worked at Restaurant Brands International in their Leadership Development Program. Lorenza holds a bachelor's degree from the College of Arts and Sciences where she majored in History (European), English and minored in Legal Studies (Wharton), American History, and Global Medieval Studies. While at UPenn, she served as the editor-in-chief of the Penn Undergraduate Law Journal, editor-in-chief of the Penn History Review, Political Director of CRs, among other organizations. Lorenza also serves as a regional representative for the Benjamin Franklin Giving Society (BFS). She currently resides in Connecticut. 

Emily Gliklich graduated from Penn with a degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics in 2021. Not quite ready to leave University City, Emily is currently pursuing the Master of Behavioral and Decision Sciences at Penn. In addition to her studies, she gives tours to prospective Penn students, tutors high school students in West Philadelphia, and manages a soup kitchen on campus.

Gabriela Goitía Vázquez is a high school literature and social sciences teacher. In 2022, she was selected as Rookie Teacher of the Year for Miami-Dade County Public Schools. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2018 with a degree in Communications and Comparative Literature. While at Penn, she served as Co-Director of CityStep, a dance-based after-school program for Philadelphia youths. She was also a Resident Advisor at Riepe college house, a Peer Anti-Violence Educator, and a member of Sphynx Senior Honor Society. She currently studies Computing in Education at Teachers College, Columbia University.

Gaëlle Gouraige is an active member of the Penn alumni community, having worked with Penn Spectrum and various events in Miami, Florida. After graduating from the College in 2008, she went on to earn her MBA at MIP Politecnico di Milano where she learned to maximize the use of social channels in conjunction with digital and traditional media to create all encompassing marketing strategies using the principles of “Design Thinking.” Working with companies across a variety of industries such as luxury, design, finance, beauty, travel, and law has given her insight on the intricacies of client management and how to maximize their visibility. Gaëlle hopes to take this knowledge even further and find ways to apply this to the Penn Libraries. Fluent in English, French, Spanish, and Italian, she aspires to expand the reach of the Penn Libraries and have it be the driving force of what a library can mean in the 21st century.

Victoria Groner is a Clinical and Research Genetic Counselor at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from the College of Arts and Sciences in 2019 with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology and received her Master of Science in Genetic Counseling from Northwestern University in 2021. While Victoria was at Penn, she was a Penn Benjamins Peer Counselor, a PennQuest Pre-Orientation Leader, and a research assistant to Dr. Allison Werner-Lin at the School of Social Policy & Practice. During her senior year, Victoria led the Ben Franklin Society Team for Seniors for the Penn Fund.

Victoria is currently based in New York City.
 

Theo Kwon is a Partner at Apollo, focused on private equity investing in the consumer industry. He currently serves on the board of directors of (i) Apollo Education, one of the largest higher education institutions in the U.S. with the University of Phoenix, (ii) Vanta Education, a global platform of premier higher education schools located in various international markets, and (iii) Tegra Global, the leading sportswear apparel manufacturer in the Western Hemisphere. Theo also previously served on the board of directors of The Fresh Market, a leading specialty grocery business with 159 stores located predominantly in the Southeastern US.

Prior to joining in 2015, Theo was a Vice President at Angelo, Gordon & Co. from 2012 to 2015. Prior thereto, he was a private equity associate at Weston Presidio and an investment banking analyst in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group at Citigroup.

Theo graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science in Economics and a Master of Business Administration.

Cory Lesher is a Senior Growth Marketing Analyst at Hungryroot, where he is responsible for supporting profitable and sustainable customer acquisition and retention initiatives. Before joining Hungryroot, he worked at Meta and LA-based outdoor furniture startup Outer. Cory currently resides in Los Angeles.

Cory holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Susan Mallaney received a BA from The University of Pennsylvania in 2009 and an MPP from the University of Chicago in 2015. After graduation from Penn, she worked at B Lab, a nonprofit that serves a global movement of people using business as a force for good. B Lab’s initiatives include B Corp Certification, administration of the B Impact Management programs and software, and advocacy for governance structures like the benefit corporation. Subsequently, she worked in investment banking and, currently, lends her skillset to BallotReady, which provides a free, nonpartisan voting guide and technology that empowers American voters to vote confidently in local and national elections, whether in person or by mail. At Penn, Susan has been involved since graduation as a member of her class gift and reunion committees and serving as an alumni interviewer since 2012. In addition, she serves on the Art Institute of Chicago's Auxiliary Board.

Susan lives in Chicago with her husband and their three children.

Vincent Marron is a Managing Director and Convertibles Portfolio Manager with Sculptor Capital. Since joining the firm in 2019, he has been responsible for underwriting and managing the firm's investments in convertible securities and corporate derivatives in North America.

Vincent began his career at JP Morgan and holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Reginal Murphy is a Management Consultant at Deloitte where he is a core member of the Diversity Equity & Inclusion practice. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science. While at Penn, Reggie was involved with Black Wharton Undergraduate Assembly, Interfraternity Council, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and is a proud member of Friars Senior Honor Society. Since graduation Reggie has been an active member of the Power of Penn Campaign and the Penn Club of Chicago.

David Ongchoco is the co-founder of Comma Capital, an early stage venture capital fund based in New York City. David invests in technology startups across software, digital health, fintech, developer tooling, and infrastructure. Previously, David spent time operating in various startups and scale-ups including Amplitude, Uber, and Rutter. During his time at Penn, David was a prolific journalist, interviewing hundreds of startup founders and investors for the Huffington Post and Inc. Magazine. He was also involved in YouthHack Philadelphia, Dorm Room Fund, Weiss Tech House, and Penn-Wharton Entrepreneurship. He studied Computer Science and Cognitive Science and was part of the Bell Senior Society and Oracle Senior Society. David grew up in the Philippines before coming to the U.S. for college and is an avid fan of Taylor Swift, basketball, and golf.

Shayna Roth is an Associate in the tax and ERISA groups at Seward & Kissel, LLP. She earned her JD from Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law and her BA from the University of Pennsylvania. At Penn, she studied urban studies and urban education policy, working closely with several of Philadelphia’s government and community organizations to improve welfare assistance programs. Shayna is also an enthusiastic alumni interviewer for the undergraduate admissions office. 

Byron Sun is a Vice President at FPA where he focuses on analyzing investments across the capital structure primarily in the global public markets. Prior to FPA, Byron was an analyst at Deccan Value Investors, a global long only investment partnership that he joined after graduating from the Wharton School. Prior to Wharton, Byron worked in private equity and investment banking. Byron received his MBA with a double concentration in Finance and Accounting from the Wharton School and his BA in Mathematics and Economics from Yale University.

Nick grew up in the city of Philadelphia and maintains strong ties to the Penn alumni community. During his time at Penn, he served as Community Service and Affairs Chair for the IFC and hopes to bring that same community engagement focus to the Penn Libraries Young Alumni Board. Nick currently focuses on corporate development & strategy at GLIC. He received his MBA from Cornell SC Johnson, his MS in Healthcare Policy from Weill Cornell Medical, and his BA from the University of Pennsylvania.

Rob Teahen is a Managing Director at Canyon Partners where he focuses on investments across the capital structure including public and private credit and equity opportunities. Prior to Canyon, Rob worked at Credit Suisse and Citigroup. Rob received his MBA from Wharton with a double concentration in Finance and Strategic Management, and lives in Los Angeles.

Amber Williams is a Product Marketing Manager at Square, focused on developing marketing strategies that drive customer acquisition and engagement for products tailored to small business owners. Before joining Square, she worked at Digitas. Amber holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from the University of Pennsylvania. Amber currently resides in New York City.

Stephanie Yee is Associate Director of Biomarker Operations at Century Therapeutics. She is Co-President of the Penn Class of 2008 and Chair of her 5th, 10th, and 15th Reunions. She serves as a Penn alumni ambassador in the Penn Alumni Ambassador Program and is a member of The James Brister Society, a diverse group of University of Pennsylvania alumni volunteer leaders. She previously served as President of the Penn Alumni Club of Philadelphia for four years and served on the University of Pennsylvania Alumni Class Leadership Council and Board of the University of Pennsylvania Association of Alumnae. While at Wharton, Stephanie co-founded WEMBA Women. Stephanie is a Penn Men's Basketball season ticket holder and is a member of multiple book clubs locally and internationally.