Investing in CBA

Your Gifts at Work—How Alumni Giving Creates New Futures

Christiana Guertin ’16

For Christiana GuertinChristiana Guertin of Woonsocket, finances have always been a struggle. An education was never a given for this ambitious accounting major who received the Richard Minot Scholarship to help make that possible.

The recent graduate excelled at URI and after her internships at Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) in Boston for three summers, Guertin accepted a position with the professional services world leader.

“I remember in high school, we would have no idea what we are going to do tomorrow because we couldn’t pay for things today,” she said. “Money sometimes really is a determining factor in the things we are able to do and it’s really hard for people who have to struggle.”

Travelling abroad was even more unlikely.  But as a serious student, Guertin was able to travel to Sao Paulo, Brazil for a semester to study macroeconomics for emerging markets. Before leaving, she’d started to learn Portuguese and decided to challenge herself by enrolling in two courses taught in the language. The entire experience was life changing. (More)

Arly Cortez ’18

A first-generation American and a first-generation college student, Arly Cortez of Providence says she feels at home at URI. She credits her business professors as mentors.

“Professor Charles Hickox saw my potential. He encouraged me to choose a business major. And faculty member Brooke D’Aloisio kept me from getting discouraged when I thought the work would be too hard.”

Cortez plans to attend law school and become a tax attorney. With two internships with Price Waterhouse Coopers, and an upcoming one with Kahn, Litwin, Renza & Co., the largest accounting firm in Providence, she’s well on her way to a successful career. On campus, Cortez mentors new students in the College of Business, serves as a URI 101 mentor, as the social media and recruitment chair for the NABA (National Association of Black Accountants), and also works in the dean’s office. She’s now planning to study in Costa Rica in 2017.

Cortez received the Brooksby A. Sanderson Memorial Scholarship and the Peter M. and Mildred J. Galanti Scholarship in support of her academic goals.

“​The scholarships I received helped me invest more time at school. I solely rely on financial aid, grants, and scholarships to afford college,” she said. “By receiving all this aid, I am able to be more focused at school and in my involvement—and I worry less.”

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