The official opening of the academic session at Lane College will be held at 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, August 21, 2024, in the Graves Auditorium and Chapel of the Chambers-McClure Academic Center. The guest speaker will be motivational speaker, orator, career coach, and senior executive Paula Fontana.
The Opening Convocation service symbolizes the start of the College’s academic year. Lane College Interim President Donald W. Comer expressed his deep appreciation for having an individual of Paula’s caliber join the community for this important event. He emphasized, “Paula is dedicated to making a positive impact, enriching lives, and ensuring student success.”
Paula B. Fontana serves as Vice President of Corporate Partner Development for the National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA). Fontana, a top executive for the NBMBAA, leads a team that drives revenue growth through sponsorship and fund development. Fontana brings a wealth of experience to her role. Before joining the NBMBAA, she spent nine years in MBA Career Management, where she developed and implemented student advising strategies and programming. At Emory University’s Goizueta Business School, she managed career programming targeting diversity students and national MBA diversity conferences, significantly increasing student participation and success rates. Her career in higher education was preceded by roles in marketing research and brand management in the consumer packaged goods and textile industries.
Fontana earned her MBA in Strategic Marketing from the University of Georgia and a Bachelor of Science in Management/Marketing from Purdue University.
Lane College extends a warm welcome to the public to join us for the Convocation service. Please be seated by 10:15 a.m. to ensure a prompt start to the event.