Ann Marano

Ann Marano serves as the Executive Director for the Colleges That Change Lives organization. Prior to representing the CTCL member institutions and championing the liberal arts and a student-centered college search and admission process through CTCL, she was the College Bound Advisor at the Irma Lerma Rangel Young Women’s Leadership School in Dallas for 12 years. While there she piloted several college bound initiatives that continue to serve as models for programs across the Young Women’s Preparatory Network of schools, including a college admissions summer camp for rising 12th graders and Senior Signing Day celebration.

Before moving to Texas in 2009, Ann worked for twenty years in college admission counseling at several secondary and post-secondary institutions in California, including Mount St. Mary’s University, Notre Dame High School (Sherman Oaks), California State University – East Bay, and California State Polytechnic University – Pomona.

Ann served on counselor advisory boards for the Dallas/Fort Worth Admissions Regional Network, the Ohio State University, Ithaca College, California State University Northridge, and the University of Texas, Austin. She is a regular presenter at regional and national higher education conferences. She co-authored a chapter on advising undocumented college bound students for the fifth edition of the Fundamentals of College Counseling published by the National Association for College Admission Counseling.

Ann is particularly grateful to have served on the Common Application Board of Directors, and the Johns Hopkins University Access Advisory Board. A proud first-generation college graduate, she believes in creating access, myth busting, and amplifying joy with and for students and families on the road to college.

Ann earned her B.A. in Sociology & English from Mount St. Mary’s University (CA) and her M.A. in Education-Psychology from Pepperdine University.