When I was asked to join this organization as executive director, I could not say no. My work is all about the art of science. My days are filled with conversations about new studies and the latest breakthroughs. I talk to patients who have gone into remission, are in treatment or are at the beginning of their cancer journey. For a research-focused organization, we balance the scientific with the personal. And I’m making a difference in people’s lives.

My father, an oncologist, was always someone who tried to find new solutions. It was solving puzzles. Art and science weren’t things to be kept apart. They informed each other. When I told my father that I wasn’t called to medicine, his answer was simple. “There is a reason they call it the art of science.”

For him, finding better ways to treat and extend the lives of his patients wasn’t just about the length of the life. It was about the quality of the life – and the art of living. And that is what The Chemotherapy+ Foundation is all about. Doing the research that leads to longer, better lives for people with cancer.

Over the course of her career in nonprofit management, Paola has raised over $10 million, improved operations, and grown programs. She served organizations such as the Making Waves Foundation, Friends of the San Francisco Public Library, and the Dance Theater of Harlem. For all of them, she found new avenues of funding and nurtured the communities served.

Paola currently teaches grant-writing, grants management, and fund development at Adelphi University. She loves the interaction with students and believes she got the teaching gene from her father. In addition to teaching, she can sometimes be seen on the “little screen” as a background actor on shows such as “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”.