Office of Executive MBA Programs

Prior to joining the Business School, Carolina was an International Student Coordinator with Columbia's ISSO. She holds a B.A. in Psychology from Rutgers University and a Master's in International Affairs, with a concentration in Economic and Political Development from Columbia SIPA. Carolina is a native Spanish speaker and is learning Portuguese and French. She was born and raised across five different countries, but spent most of her life in New Jersey.    

Mariela Breton is an Assistant Director, Student Affairs for Executive MBA programs. In this role, she takes on the responsibility of being the main point of contact and academic advisor for students enrolled in the class of 2025 within the EMBA-NY Saturday program. She also takes on the role of project manager for the EMBA-Global graduation in February. Mariela takes the lead in organizing student-centered gatherings like Networking Socials and other weekend events.

Brandon Kelly joined Columbia Business School in 2019. He is the Associate Director, Student Affairs for Executive MBA programs. In his role, Brandon manages the EMBA-Global program, EMBA’s partnership program with London Business School. Additionally, he is the lead project manager for the EMBA-NY graduation in spring and has previously served as the student affairs lead for both EMBA-NY programs.

As the Director of Budget Operations and Analysis, Soemanta provides high-level support with special emphasis on financial and operations management of departmental budgets under Curriculum & Programs, this includes budgeting, forecasting, tuition and partnership program expense reconciliation, student billing, and accounts payable. She also manages the third-party billing process for incoming EMBA students.

Claire Netemeyer is the Assistant Director, Academic and Student Affairs for the Executive MBA programs. She serves as an academic advisor and coordinates small-scale events for all EMBA cohorts. She holds a B.A. in Media Studies and Spanish from the University of Virginia and an M.A. in Higher and Postsecondary Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. 

Catalina Ortiz is the Assistant Director of Operations and Student Services in the Executive MBA Programs. She manages the life cycle and development of the executive degree programs, with a special emphasis on financial and operations management, student billing and account management, accounts payable, and budget support.  

As Director of Academic & Student Affairs, Susan oversees academics and student life for all EMBA Programs at Columbia Business School. The Academic and Student Affairs team that she leads supports EMBA students throughout their lifecycle as a student, including the onboarding process, organizing orientations, serving as academic advisors, planning events throughout the program, approving students for degree conferral, and coordinating graduation ceremonies.