Five Baldwin Alumnae Inspire the Class of 2025 at “Beyond Baldwin” Panel

A powerful sense of legacy and possibility filled the Simpson Center as five Baldwin School alumnae returned to campus during Reunion Weekend to take part in “Beyond Baldwin,” a special panel held for the Class of 2025. These accomplished women — leaders in business, tech, medicine, media and finance — shared not only their professional journeys but also heartfelt reflections on the role Baldwin played in shaping who they are today.

 

The panelists included:

Each alumna brought a unique perspective, but a common thread ran through all their stories: Baldwin’s academics and strong community built the foundation for their courage to explore, lead and evolve.

Jodi Teitelman ’91, who now leads content distribution strategy at QVC, shared how her journey from English literature major to a high-level executive in media was fueled by the confidence, communication and critical thinking skills she honed at Baldwin. In her current position, Jodi is charged with maintaining and increasing distribution for QVC, HSN, the QVC+/HSN+ streaming service and related channels across all platforms by strengthening relationships with key affiliates and partners, executing strategic affiliate and trade marketing activities, negotiating complex carriage deals for both traditional and streaming distributors, and directing the activities of an account management team. Jodi earned her bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Columbia University and her law degree from Temple University. She is also a graduate of the WICT Betsy Magness Leadership Institute, which is a premier leadership development program for senior-level professionals across media, entertainment and technology.

 

Ariane Wright ’09 discussed her trajectory from the University of Miami, where she received a degree in International Finance and Marketing, to her current position at global financial powerhouse BlackRock. Ariane also has a Master’s in Investment Management from Temple University’s Fox School of Business. In her current position, she supports the portfolio managers with trade requests and optimizes processes and procedures for the broader Portfolio Management team. She also acts as a central point of contact between internal partners and external clients. Before joining BlackRock, Ariane has had a variety of finance and investment roles at JP Morgan, Merrill Lynch, and Vanguard.

 

For Amanda Steinberg ’95, who founded multiple startups including the AI-powered finance platform CanCat.io, Baldwin was the launchpad for bold thinking. Amanda emphasized how Baldwin gave her the confidence to take risks and be willing to fail and try again. Amanda founded DailyWorth, a pioneering digital financial platform for women that grew to over one million subscribers, which was acquired in 2017. As founder of DailyWorth, she was named to Oprah Winfrey's Super Soul 100 and Forbes' New American Money Masters. She is the author of the best-selling book Worth It: Your Money, Your Life, Your Terms. A Columbia graduate in Urban Studies, Amanda is now pursuing a Master’s in City Planning at Temple University to prepare for a potential run for public office. She is currently planning a relocation to Tokyo for eight months, where she will study Tokyo urbanism.

Dr. Shubha Lakshmi Bhat ’05 is a proud member of the Class of Green. After Baldwin, she attended Harvard College where she majored in economics with a minor in health policy. After college she received her medical degree from Stanford University. She is now a primary care doctor and lives in Houston, TX, with her husband and children. A mother of three, she beamed as she acknowledged her daughter and mother in the audience, bringing her story full circle. At Baldwin, Shubha was an editor of the Hourglass, co-captain of the Varsity Tennis team, member of the Service League and co-founder of a self-defense club called AWAKE, which was formed in memory of her classmate Alex Wake ’05. While at Baldwin, if Shubha wasn’t prepping for a science competition, she was mostly likely to be found teaching a classmate or teacher how to knit and collecting their handmade hats and scarves for donation to local organizations.

 

Lauren J. Walker ’04 offered the Class of 2025 insights from the intersection of law, government and entertainment. In her role at CAA, Lauren negotiates commercial endorsement deals for social media offers, client appearances and brand partnerships. Prior to working at CAA, Lauren worked in local government in a number of roles ranging from Special Assistant to the Mayor to Deputy Chief of Staff. While working for local government, Lauren worked to increase community coordination efforts between government entities and the communities they served. Prior to working in local government, Lauren served as an Americorps Vista in the Mayor’s Office of Civic Engagement and Volunteer Service. She attended Howard University for both her undergraduate and law school degrees. Lauren is a graduate of Leadership Philadelphia and serves on the board of Play on Philly — an organization that provides music education to young students through before and after-school training. Lauren noted that her favorite memory of Baldwin was acting in various musical theatre productions.

 

Throughout the panel, the Class of 2025 listened attentively, soaking in stories of success, challenge, reinvention and resilience. As the session came to a close, students left with a vision of what’s possible and a deeper understanding that beyond Baldwin, the journey is just beginning.