Featured Speaker Treatment_Meghan Hughes

Meghan Hughes

Head of Workforce Development, Arts & Heritage, Bank of America

 
 
 
 

Meghan Hughes oversees Workforce Development, Community Advancement, the Leader on Loan program and Arts & Heritage for Bank of America. 

In this role, she is responsible for collaborating with colleagues and community workforce development partners to create employer-informed, diverse pipelines of talent for family-sustaining jobs of the future, leading to scalable and sustainable social and economic mobility. Through the Leader on Loan program, her team coordinates with local markets to place Bank of America talent with nonprofit partners to drive impact in the communities we serve. Her team also supports nonprofits around the world to drive engagement and accessibility with the arts, while promoting cultural sustainability. 

Prior to joining the bank in 2023, Meghan was President of the Community College of Rhode Island, New England’s largest community college. During her nearly eight years as president, she focused on providing students with education and workforce training that led to strong learning outcomes, successful degree attainment and quality employment. Under her leadership, the college achieved its highest graduation rates in more than 20 years. 

Previously, Meghan served as a member of Year Up’s national leadership team and as the executive director of Year Up Rhode Island. Year Up is a national nonprofit delivering a one-year, intensive training program that provides low-income young adults with a combination of hands-on skill development, college credits and corporate internships to secure quality employment. 

She chairs the board of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce and is a board member of the Rhode Island Foundation, the College Board Community College Workforce Consortium’s Executive Committee and the Rhode Island Commodores. 

Meghan has spent 30 years working for and with organizations that advance socio- economic mobility through education, employment, public policy, and public service. She has been recognized with the American 2-Year College of the Year award from Education Dive; the Aspen Presidential Fellowship for Community College Excellence; the Trailblazer in Education award from the RISE Leadership Conference; the Latino Public Radio Foundation Builder award, the Junior Achievement Profile In Excellence Award, and the Rhode Island Foundation Community Leader award. 

Meghan graduated magna cum laude from Yale University and earned a doctorate from New York University. 

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