Vaughan, an administrator for Chicago Public Schools was working on a dropout prevention and recovery strategy when she learned that America’s Promise Alliance, founded by General Colin Powell, had begun to focus on similar issues.

Michigan Engineering alums in public service have fanned out around the world to involve themselves in public service. But Carmita Vaughan (BSE ChE ’99) went no farther than Washington, DC, to become Chief Strategy Officer for America’s Promise Alliance and touch tens of thousands of young lives across the country. “I was drawn here by the desire to leverage the experience I’ve had serving as an advocate for youth at a local level,” she said. “I believe that we’re all obliged to leave a positive mark on this Earth, and that happens through the work you do in service to others.”

Vaughan’s passion for service is deep-seated. She grew up in a family with a disabled parent who believed fervently that education would be the key to Carmita's escape from the family’s life below the poverty line. “I was taught that ‘to whom much is given, much is required,’” she said. “I've been fortunate to have had a good number of positive experiences due to the education that I received. So I want to serve as an advocate for those who often lack the resources necessary to fulfill their promise. I don't want to increase the number of children beating the odds; I want to change those odds so that all our children are prepared and expected to succeed.”

Vaughan holds an MBA in finance and management strategy from the Kellogg School of Management, and she studied abroad at the London Business School, where she focused her studies on finance and international business. However, she honed her problem-solving skills at Michigan Engineering. “After being a high-achiever in high school, I quickly learned that nothing I had previously done prepared me for the rigors of chemical engineering…talk about a humbling experience! I was fortunate to have a host of supportive professors, and peers who challenged me, forced me not to doubt my abilities and pushed me to do my best. In addition to being actively engaged in engineering activities (NSBE, NOBCChE, AICHE), I was also involved in a host of other activities -- U-M Gospel Chorale, Alternative Spring Break and Arts Chorale -- and usually held down one or two jobs each semester. Whew…just thinking about it makes me tired!”

Despite the hard work that Vaughan did to earn a chemical engineering degree, she eventually moved into education administration. She’s often asked about that and if she’d pursue another field of study if she had it to do over. Her response is an emphatic “no!” “I truly believe that the approach toward problem solving and critical thinking that I learned in my undergraduate engineering studies has been critical at every stage of my professional career -- not only while I was an engineer at Procter & Gamble but as an administrator with Chicago Public Schools. Most success during your career depends on your ability to quickly assess a situation, gather relevant data, evaluate it, and make timely and thoughtful decisions. My Michigan Engineering training gave me the foundation to do that, as well as to use those skills in a socially responsible way and make a greater impact on society.”

Michael Powell, General Colin Powell’s son, sits on the America’s Promise Alliance Board, which is chaired by Alma Powell, the General’s wife. The Board selected Vaughan in great part because of her experience as former chief of staff of Chicago Public Schools’ Office of High Schools and High School Programs. That experience will be a key resource as she works with nearly 350 partner organizations to help states and local communities increase high-school graduation rates and ensure that all students graduate high school are prepared for college, work and life.

Vaughan started changing people’s lives for the better long before leaving the College of Engineering. “I spent the spring break of my freshman year completing a service project at an HIV/AIDS center in Atlanta, Georgia,” she said. “That experience was life-changing in a number of ways. Not only was it an opportunity to positively serve the community by working with a group of adults dealing with the challenges associated with their illness -- physical limitations, rejection from family and friends, and overwhelming prescription costs -- it also allowed me to share the experience with a diverse group of students from all walks of life who were equally driven by the need to serve others.”

That selflessness characterized her U-M years, after which she did spend a number of years as an engineer, first with Procter & Gamble, where she rose quickly into operations management, and then for Danaher Corporation as a product manager. At that point she jumped into the world of education, accepting a Broad Residency in Education position with Chicago Public Schools. There she served as Director of Graduation Pathways (Dropout Prevention and Recovery) and then Chief of Staff, Office of High Schools and High School Programs. In April 2009, America’s Promise Alliance named her Chief Strategy Officer.

She manages her free time with the eye of an engineer, getting the most out of every hour. “I like to read and travel -- I’ve visited 18 countries so far. I’m an avid sports fan -- I enjoy weight training -- and you’ll often catch me singing, working a Sudoku puzzle or watching movies." And she’s been married to Damon Vaughan since 2004. “He’s an electrical engineer,” she said, “but I don’t hold that against him.”