Dr. Cynthia K. Orellana Joins Bunker Hill Community College Board of Trustees
Thursday, September 19, 2024
Mass Mentoring Partnership President and CEO, higher education leader begins term this fall
Dr. Cynthia K. Orellana, President and CEO of Mass Mentoring Partnership, has joined the Bunker Hill Community College Board of Trustees. Appointed by Governor Maura Healey, Dr. Orellana attended her first BHCC Board meeting in September.
"I am honored to serve as a Bunker Hill Community College Trustee,” said Dr. Orellana. “As a first-generation college-goer, I know the power of higher education to unlock upward economic mobility. As a lifelong Cambridge resident, I know the important role BHCC plays in our communities as an engine of opportunity and inclusion for our Commonwealth.”
The Board of Trustees of Bunker Hill Community College serves as the governing body responsible for setting policy to achieve the mission and goals of Bunker Hill Community College. Members exemplify a standard of leadership that is ethical, values diversity, and promotes student success.
“Dr. Orellana’s experience as leader in higher education and in working with organizations that serve the very same communities where BHCC students live, learn and work is a tremendous asset to our Board of Trustees and to the College,” said Bunker Hill Community College Board of Trustees Chair Bill Walczak.
“I am so pleased to welcome Dr. Orellana to the BHCC Board,” said President Pam Eddinger. “I can think of no better Trustee and steward of BHCC’s mission than this extraordinary person who has worked and lived in the spaces that have supported our students for so many years.”
Dr. Orellana was named President and CEO of Mass Mentoring Partnership in 2024. The statewide nonprofit organization is focused on supporting young people – and the over 350 youth serving organizations and mentoring programs across the Commonwealth that serve them – by ensuring the mentoring relationships they need to develop into thriving, engaged adults.
Prior to leading Mass Mentoring Partnerships, Dr. Orellana served as the Director of the Office of Community Partnerships at the University of Massachusetts Boston where she led university-community engagement strategies. Earlier, she served as the Assistant Commissioner for Access and Success Strategies at the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education, where she led strategic policy initiatives and oversaw over $3.5 million in federal and state funded grant programs to increase college readiness and participation of the Commonwealth’s students, particularly first-generation to college, low-income and under-represented students. Dr. Orellana also served as Director of the Commonwealth Corps in the Office of Governor Deval Patrick, one of the Governor’s cornerstone civic engagement initiatives, and promoted civic engagement through grassroots governance projects that touched upon an array of issues including immigration, income tax credits, public budgeting processes, and young adults.
Dr. Orellana holds a Ph.D. in higher education leadership from University of Massachusetts Boston, an MA in urban and environmental policy and planning from Tufts University, and a BS in political science from Northeastern University. She has a history of service on boards and national and local advisory groups, including as a Founding Board Member of Chica Project, Campus Compact’s NE Advisory Board, City Year Greater Boston's Board of Directors, among others. Currently, she serves on the Board of Directors for Community Catalyst, a national organization which seeks to build the power of people to create a health system rooted in race equity and health justice.