Marlene has been leading Big Brothers Big Sisters Southeastern PA (BBBS SEPA) since 2002, after spending a year working with Big Brothers Big Sisters of America to spearhead the merger of regional affiliate agencies into what has become the Southeastern PA organization. She brings to the agency a wealth of senior management experience derived in the for-profit arena, where she focused primarily on operations, customer service and retail sales development and expansion.
Marlene’s very specific knowledge of operations, support, service delivery and sales/funding was developed throughout the course of her career as she focused on expansion and growth of the business lines she managed. Prior to joining the Big Brothers Big Sisters network, Marlene spent five years in an entrepreneurial investment services consulting group where, as a Managing Director of the Spectrem Group, Inc., she participated at the highest levels in the design and growth of this $10 million, national organization’s product line, marketing programs, and managed all operational services.
Her experience in developing products, services and generating revenue was begun in the retail industry where, over a fourteen-year period, Marlene held the role of Vice President for three major retailers and oversaw an extensive network of sales outlets. Specifically her responsibilities included management of a $200 million, 200 store business line for The Children’s Place; a $50 million, 17 store business line for Conran’s home furnishings; and a $100 million, 100+ store business line for Macy’s Specialty Stores.
Marlene’s passion for trying to reach and help every at-risk child drives the growth that she and her Executive Team direct at BBBS SEPA. In her own words, the desire to “level the playing field” for children facing what could be insurmountable social, economic and academic challenges keeps her motivated and focused on always expanding and improving the mentoring services that the agency delivers.
Under her management, BBBS SEPA has been recognized nationally for working with a partner, Public Private Ventures, to develop the first one-to-one mentoring program designed to meet the specific needs of children with an incarcerated parent or guardian. The Amachi program has since spread to multiple agencies and organizations throughout the country and has served more than 100,000 children nationwide since its inception.
Marlene and her team also developed a new one-to-one mentoring program, Beyond School Walls ™, which is designed to expose children from inner city and highly challenged neighborhoods to professional working environments. The children are transported during the school day from their classroom to a corporate partner’s facility where they meet with volunteer mentors in the mentors’ own office settings. The success of this program concept has been so great that it is now being adopted across the nation by other Big Brothers Big Sisters agencies, and is a nationwide community initiative for Comcast, who is partnering with several agencies to offer Beyond School Walls™ programs at multiple office locations of theirs throughout the country.
Marlene has been recognized for her efforts in supporting and trying to improve the communities within the BBBS SEPA service region and was voted one of Philadelphia’s 101 most connected leaders in 2006 by Leadership Philadelphia; is one of only a handful of non-lawyers appointed to the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Commission on Judicial Selection and Retention; and was named by the Governor to the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency prevention. Her numerous published articles and interviews continually focus on the need to engage more volunteers and funders so that BBBS SEPA can ultimately provide a Big Brother or Big Sister to every child within the region who wants or needs one.
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