Rachel Romer | |
|---|---|
 Speaking at the 2023 World Economic Forum | |
| Born | June 1, 1988 |
| Education | Stanford University |
| Occupation | CEO |
| Known for | Co-founder of Guild Education |
| Spouse | David Carlson (m. 2014;div. 2023) |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent(s) | Chris Romer, Laurie Romer |
| Awards | (2021) Forbes list of self-made women |
Rachel Romer (born 1988) is the co-founder and former CEO of Guild.
Rachel Romer is the daughter of former Colorado State Senator and charter school investor Chris Romer, and a granddaughter of former Colorado Governor Roy Romer. [1] [2] Governor Romer was instrumental in the formation and growth of Western Governors University. As a child, she sometimes attended and participated in her grandfather's campaign, and in 2011 worked as the finance director for her father's unsuccessful mayoral campaign. [1] [2]
She completed an undergraduate degree, and also an MBA and an MA in education at Stanford University. [2] [3] [4] While at Stanford, she took a break to work for the Obama administration. [5] She also worked with her father on issues related to access to higher education. [5]
After graduation, Romer worked for American Honors, an organization co-founded by her father that coaches community college students, and The Parthenon Group, Ernst & Young's global strategy consulting arm, as well as the Obama campaign and the Office of Presidential Personnel in the Obama administration. [3] [4] She was the chief executive of Student Blueprint, [6] an app she created while at Stanford during her MBA program to help community college students find jobs. [1]
In 2015, at the age of 27, Romer co-founded Guild Education with her former classmate Brittany Stich, [3] after she conducted research for two years with Stich into low graduation rates, [7] [1] In 2019, the organization became valued at over $1 billion. [8] In 2020, it was listed as a CNBC Top 50 disruptor. [9]
In March 2020, Romer co-authored an open letter, signed by more than 450 other CEOs and investors, advocating for business leaders to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic. [10] [11] [12] She is a co-founder and strategic advisor for the organization Stop The Spread. [13]
In June 2021 Guild Education was valued at $3.7 billion. [14] Romer's personal wealth was estimated to be $570 million in 2022. [15] In 2023, Forbes estimated her net worth to be $320 million. [16]
In 2014, Rachel Romer married David Carlson. [19] She has 2 daughters. [3] In 2023, she divorced and suffered a stroke. [20]
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