2023 June Mag
Paula Fontana was created to inspire and motivate others to be the best version of themselves in her personal life through motivational Spoken Word and her professional endeavors.
Paula Fontana was created to inspire and motivate others to be the best version of themselves in her personal life through motivational Spoken Word and her professional life through co-leading the National Black MBA Association as Interim President.
The mission of the National Black MBA Association is to lead in the creation of educational, wealth-building, and growth opportunities for Blacks throughout all stages of their careers as students, professionals, and entrepreneurs. Paula’s commitment to understanding customer needs and creating products and programming to fill those needs, intertwined with her passion for impacting and enriching lives through diversity initiatives provides the platform to make an impactful difference in serving NBMBAA members.
Prior to joining the Association, Paula worked in MBA Career Management for 9 years where she developed and implemented student advising strategies and programming. While at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School, she managed the career programming targeting diversity students and national MBA diversity conferences to increase student participation and success rates.
Before pursuing a career in higher education, Paula had 12 years of experience in marketing research and brand management in the consumer-packaged goods and textile industries. Paula earned her MBA from the University of Georgia and her Bachelor of Science degree from Purdue University.
Fontana was born and raised in Chicago, IL, where she attended a private school in the heart of the city’s South Side. There, she developed a love for God and a passion for studying His word. Since most of her teachers and classmates also attended her church, a sense of community and accountability were commonplace. It was during those formative years that the importance of understanding and serving others were imprinted in her mind, although it would not materialize until years later.
Paula has used her gift of Spoken Word on LPs, for weddings, funerals, and birthday parties. You can also find her delivering a daily motivational word clothed in her unique statement-making Afrocentric style on social media platforms. The foundation of Paula’s life, and her pieces, is rooted in her faith and scripture. Her favorite passage is 2 Corinthians 4: 8-9: “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed.”
Paula lives in a southern suburb of Atlanta, GA along with her husband Tony and her son Colby, a rising senior at Tennessee State University.
Contact Paula:
Email: paula@iampaulafontana.com
The article is as wonderful as the jewelry!
Love Paula Fontana! It was great to get to know a little more about the woman behind the short but impactful motivational messages in Instagram.