By Carol Latter
“I’m a big believer in a liberal arts education,” says Lisa Marinello Jones ’84, P’15. “Liberal arts gives you the opportunity to expand your thinking, helps you learn to think analytically, and allows you to practice writing as a craft. I think all of those things are beneficial, regardless of what career direction you’re going in.”
As a high school student, the Saugus, Massachusetts, native envisioned herself pursuing a college degree in the sciences. But after applying to – and visiting – Trinity College on the advice of her guidance counselor, “I fell in love with the Long Walk, the quad, and the feel of the school.”
Today, Jones is the Boston-based CEO of U.S. business for Pioneer Investments, a global firm with more than $250 billion in assets under management. She says her bachelor of arts degree in economics stood her in good stead as she climbed the financial services career ladder in New York and Boston and traveled the globe on business.
“I truly believe Trinity provided me with the platform of education and life skills that allowed me to become successful in the field that I’m in,” she says, adding that while she was in college, she savored every moment of courses like philosophy, English, Asian studies, and art history. She also had an opportunity to study overseas at the College’s Rome campus, an experience she treasures.
More than 30 years after earning her degree, Jones continues to be active with her alma mater. She is committed to helping current students, her fellow alumni, and the College whenever she can.
She has volunteered with the Career Development Center as a mentor, coaching students to explore job opportunities. But her involvement doesn’t end there, says Gretchen Orschiedt, director of principal gifts and international advancement at Trinity. Jones also has supported the center philanthropically and has worked to strengthen programs for students throughout their four years at Trinity.
“Lisa is terrific,” says Orschiedt. “She’s smart, she’s enthusiastic, and she wants to help students take full advantage of opportunities to expand their horizons, study abroad, and tap into their Trinity network.”
She notes Jones has maintained close connections with her own Class of ’84. In addition to serving as a committee member for her 10th, 20th, 25th, and 30th reunions, the busy CEO has “marshaled attendance, organized activities, and helped fundraise with her class to reach giving goals.”
In support of the College as a whole, Jones has twice served on the Board of Fellows. “And last year,” says Orschiedt, “she hosted a President’s Reception at her Naples, Florida, home.”
Orschiedt has high praise for Jones, both as an alumnus and as a person. “Lisa is upbeat and positive, she cares deeply, and we’re very grateful for her leadership and engagement. She has been committed to the College throughout her life, all while pursuing a career and raising a family. She and her husband have treated Trinity as a priority.”
Jones was delighted when her eldest daughter decided to enroll at Trinity in 2011. Samantha, who graduates this spring, pursued many of the same opportunities as did her mother, including studying in Rome and taking her mother’s favorite class: Asian religious studies with Professor Ellison Findly.
Jones couldn’t be happier about her own choice of college and the positive impact it has had on her life.
“Trinity fosters an environment of great adventure and learning and an opportunity not only to experience personal growth but also to expand your horizons of people, backgrounds, culture, and different disciplines,” she says. “That concentration of opportunity in a four-year course of study is really a privilege and a gift that I hope students appreciate, recognize, and take advantage of – because it goes by too quickly.”