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Award-Winning Workplace
Ascent is proud to be named a “Best Places to Work” by the San Diego Business Journal and American Banker, and be designated as one of San Diego’s Best and Brightest companies to work for.
View Awards
1st Place Best Places to
Work in SoCal 2024
San Diego Business Journal
Best Places to Work 2024
American Banker
Best Places to Work in Fintech 2024
Meet the Ascent Team
Board of Directors
Ken Ruggiero
Chairman
Greg Mauro
Board Member
Roderick Nunn
Board Member
Nicole West
Board Member
Ryan Gray
Board Member
Tristan Fleming
Board Member
Matt Myers
Board Member
Advisory Board
Anita Thomas
Advisory Board Member
Debra Chromy
Advisory Board Member
Hillary Mickell
Advisory Board Member
Jamie Jacobs
Advisory Board Member
Neville Billimoria
Advisory Board Member
Steve Coggeshall
Advisory Board Member
Matthew Berry
Advisory Board Member
Team Members
Abby Liu
Marketing Specialist I
Alan Ward
Senior Marketing Data Analyst
Albert Olivares
Senior Software Engineer
Alex Acosta
Senior Data Engineer
Alex Stultz
Senior Underwriter
Alexis Kruger
Senior Marketing Manager
Ali Valentino
Product Marketing Specialist
Allie Danziger
SVP and GM, AscentUP
Allison Thompson
Loan Processor
Andrea Jenkins
Sr. Director, Customer Success & Solutions
Ann Richards
Senior Technical Project Manager
Arin Nahapatian
Corporate and Compliance Counsel
Art Kang
VP, Technology
Audrey Eucker
Social Media and Digital Marketing Coordinator
Avery Ryder
Senior Software Engineer
Becky White
Loan Processor
Bella Schroeder
Marketing Manager, AscentUP
Bill Dusha
Senior Software Engineer
Brandon Smith
Senior Financial Reporting Analyst
Carlos Morales
Senior Financial Analyst
Casey Stenger
Project Manager
Chad Augood
Partner Development Manager
Chandler Smith
Senior Software Engineer
Chantelle Isaacs
School Support Coordinator
Chelsea Lacy
Customer Service Representative
Chloe King
Human Resources Generalist
Christian Bohn
Manager, Customer Success, AscentUP
Chuck Dotson
Underwriter
Courtney Roth
Legal Assistant
Crista Wray
Director, Product and School Quality
Danny Lopez
Loan Processor
Danny Witt
Senior Business Data Analyst
Dave Malmrose
Outbound Engagement Specialist
Dawn Cope
Compliance Analyst
Ella Tadmor
Associate Software Engineer
Emily Skoubo
Senior Human Resources Manager
Felicia Wetzel
Lead Coach & Program Producer
Garrett Galley
Chief Technology Officer
Garry McMichael
Senior Analyst, Corporate Strategy
Gracie Smolyaninov
Treasury Operations Associate
Ian Meade
Senior Accounting Manager
Jacob Lin
VP, Finance, Treasury & Accounting
Jake Terrell
Manager, Treasury & Capital Markets
Jamie Kautzman
Fulfillment Manager
Janet Bringa
Customer Service Representative
JD Ephraim
Loan Processor
Jeff Fritz
Director, Business Development
Jeff Jackson
Chief Capital Officer
Jenn Roberts
Director, School Partnerships
Jennifer Aguilar
Certification Specialist
Joanna Widmier
Director, Engagement Marketing
John Gross
Senior Business Data Analyst
Jon Michalik
VP, Operations
Josh Deason
Quality Assurance Engineer
Joshua Kim
IT Help Desk
Karol Raymond
Quality Coordinator
Ken Ruggiero
President & CEO
Kevin Boldin
Quality Manager
Kim McNealy
SVP and GM, Student Funding
Kumba McGill
Relationship Manager
Kylie Gard
Senior Loan Processor II
Lauren Garner
VP, Demand Generation and Partnerships
Lorenza Rodriguez
Marketing Manager
MacKenzie Lahren
Recruitment Coordinator, AscentUP
Maddie Tomasek
Marketing Coordinator
Mars Cheung
Senior Software Engineer
Mary Aguimatang
Senior Accountant
Meredith Connelly
Customer Experience Manager
Michael Middleton
SVP and GM, College Funding
Michele Shank
VP Impact & Senior Counsel
Naomi Rodriguez
Accounts Payable & Accounts Receivable Specialist
Nicholas Dunn
Staff Software Engineer
Nicole Shannon
Account Manager, School Partnerships
Olaf Kunkel
Staff Software Engineer
Olivia Arneson
Growth Marketing Specialist I
Pam Hughes
Sr. Director, Technical Product Management
Paul Bartlett
Software Engineer
Payam Karbalai
Partnerships Marketing Manager
Rafael Bedoya
Analytics Engineer
Ralph Linares
Senior IT Manager
Reese Billington
Customer Service Representative
Reza Emdad
Senior Staff Backend Engineer
Ryan Aditya
Director, Business Analysis
Ryan Gray
Chief Financial Officer & Chief Operating Officer
Ryan Pearson
Software Engineer
Ryan Valenzuela
Operations Loan Coordinator
Santhoshi Chandramouly
Staff Data Engineer
Scott Greenberg
Senior Learning Designer
Seth Formal
SVP and GM, Career Funding
Sid Huerta
Senior Originations Manager
Susan Bussolari
Executive Assistant
Sylvia Chen
Senior Analyst
Tatum Drinnenberg
Senior Executive Assistant
Tristan Fleming
Chief Impact Officer & General Counsel
Xing Li
VP, Capital Markets
Our Core Values: WE ARE Ascent
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Work as a team
Ideas flow when we listen and learn from one another. We build the best solutions when we work together and co-create with customers.
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Empower Success
Learning and growth unlock limitless possibilities. When our customers, communities and coworkers succeed and prosper, we do too.
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Act with integrity
Honesty and candor build trust. Our clear, frequent, and transparent communications build confidence with our team and our customers.
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Reimagine the frontier
A curious and courageous mindset creates broader access, eliminates obstacles, inspires new solutions, and fuels action.
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Embrace our diversity
Diversity of background, experiences, and voices makes us stronger. We advocate for broad participation, champion diverse needs, and foster a sense of belonging.
A loan is just the start
115,000+
people have used an Ascent loan to pay for school*
85%
of outcomes-based borrowers increased their credit score
1.2 million+
minutes of financial wellness education accessed
$332,000+
scholarships awarded by Ascent since 2020
*Over 115,000 borrowers took out an Ascent loan for college or career training tuition or expenses between January 2018 and November 2024.
