Sacred Heart Greenwich Upper School students welcomed alumnae Ms. Mary Bohan ’06, Ms. Cassidy Mara ’08, Mrs. Jennifer Bentley Rivera ’94, and Ms. Kathleen Spillane ’11 to the Lennie and John de Csepel Theater for the Alumnae Career Morning October 23. The alumnae reflected upon their career experiences and offered insight into how Sacred Heart instilled essential values in them, which they continue to apply in their lives today actively.
After graduating from Sacred Heart, Ms. Bohan attended Duke University, where she majored in Economics. After she graduated from Duke, she moved to Paris, France, to take graduate courses and aid in the launch of a travel start-up. Currently, she is the vice president of Marketing Analytics for Chase Travel and assists in developing a travel agency within JPMorgan Chase. Ms. Bohan explained how Sacred Heart cultivated her strong work ethic, helping her succeed professionally.
“So much that I have learned at Sacred Heart has returned,” Ms. Bohan said. “The values that I gained were strong, and I think as long as you work hard and are willing to take a risk, I think it comes back to help you.”
Her co-worker recruited Ms. Bohan to work at JPMorgan Chase. Although she was not wholly certain about her prospective role in the job, she decided to trust her co-worker because of her strong values, similar to those she learned at Sacred Heart. She commented that she appreciates the moral principles taught at Sacred Heart because they have helped her discern the characteristics of honorable people.
“One thing I appreciate coming from Sacred Heart is that you take for granted that you are around people who are ethical, and you have the Goals and Criteria and treat people fairly,” Ms. Bohan said. “You don’t realize how important that is until you are in an environment where that’s not happening.”
Ms. Mara studied political science and public relations at Villanova University. Upon her university graduation in 2012, she attended Fordham Law School. After college, Ms. Mara has represented employers in labor and employment disputes. She has handled discrimination, retaliation, harassment claims, and class action wage and hour lawsuits in New York state, Connecticut, New Jersey state courts, and federal courts. Ms. Mara currently works in-house at Deloitte as employment counsel, dealing with internal employment-related issues. She discussed how Sacred Heart played a significant role in her decision to become an attorney because of the intellectual curiosity and values present in her classes.
“Looking back, I think the things that led me to go into law are many of the values that I learned at Sacred Heart from the thirst for knowledge,” Ms. Mara said. “I’m helping people solve problems every day. I’m reading a lot and writing a lot. These things that, when I was at Sacred Heart, seemed like just class, and it’s gone so far beyond that now and every day. I think that there is no way I could have gotten this far if it were not for what I learned at Sacred Heart.”
Mrs. Rivera began her college education at Boston University in 1994, and she received her bachelor’s degree in Psychology. Mrs. Rivera worked at the Waterside School in Stamford, Connecticut, and is presently the Executive Director of Kids Helping Kids. Kids Helping Kids is a non-profit organization that aims to cultivate adolescent leadership skills through service projects. Moreover, Mrs. Rivera is the mother of two Sacred Heart graduates, Micaela Rivera ’21 and Caitlyn Rivera ’22. Mrs. Rivera shared how her years attending Sacred Heart helped her gain knowledge of the significance of time management and how grasping this value has aided her in many high-stress situations amidst her busy schedule.
“Time management is your friend,” Mrs. Rivera said. “I think that is one of the skills I learned here at Sacred Heart. Sacred Heart teaches how to prioritize the things that you love so you can get things done well.”
Ms. Spillane received her bachelor’s degree in English from Dartmouth College in 2015. She then began her career as a Legal Assistant at White & Case LLP in Washington, D.C. She worked for Late Night with Seth Meyers, Saturday Night Live, the Entertainment Publicity Department, and CNBC’s Mad Money with Jim Cramer. Additionally, Ms. Spillane served as Segment Coordinator at Late Night with Seth Meyers for four years and is now a Talent Booker at Spotify’s “The Ringer” Podcast Network. She explained that her role as a booker for Spotify’s sports and pop culture content studio enables her to help with guest interviews for their podcasts.
Ms. Spillane attributed a significant portion of what she has learned to Sacred Heart. She credited her Sacred Heart foundation with helping her succeed as a student and individual. Due to her experience in different careers, Ms. Spillane highlighted how Sacred Heart instilled in her the confidence to take risks, emphasizing the importance of individuals feeling empowered to alter their career paths if unsatisfied.
“If something does not feel right, you could always try something else, and I think Sacred Heart teaches you that as well, not to be afraid to take that leap,” Ms. Spillane said.
Featured Image by Ava Briganti ’25
