Mary-Chris Escobar is the Assistant Director for Academic and Experiential Programs at Virginia Commonwealth University’s da Vinci Center. She holds a Master of Education in Counselor Education from VCU. After working at VCU in University Academic Advising for more than six years, she brought her passion for student services and cross-disciplinary education to the da Vinci Center team in summer 2018. At The da Vinci Center, Mary-Chris provides assistance in the oversight of academic programs–engaging in activities related to recruiting, advising, and curriculum planning. She is also the instructor for the center’s introductory course INNO 200-Introduction to Innovation and Venture Creation. Prior to her work in higher education, Mary-Chris worked in human services in both the non-profit and government sector.