More Women Leading
Strong Vision. Strong Leadership.
Elissa Sangster
CEO
Elissa Sangster serves as CEO of Forté and brings to the role extensive knowledge of issues affecting women's abilities to seek, prepare for and attain business leadership positions, drawn from her prior experience as Assistant Dean and Director of the MBA Program at the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin. There she oversaw all activities related to the full-time McCombs MBA program including marketing, admissions, student services, and alumni relations. Before McCombs, Elissa was Assistant Director of the MBA Program at Texas A&M University’s Mays School of Business.
Elissa currently serves as Treasurer and Board Member for the Thirty Percent Coalition. She also sits on the Women’s Initiative Council of the CFP Board (Certified Financial Planning Board). She is past Chair of the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) Annual Industry Conference and formerly served as chair of MBA Student Services Professionals (MBA SSP). Elissa sits on the board of Forté as an ex-officio member. She enjoys reading, running, cooking, and Aggie football. She lives in San Antonio with her husband, Jeremy, and their daughter, Anna Leigh. Elissa received her MBA and her B.A. in English from Texas A&M University.
Daniel Garza
Vice President, External Relations
Daniel is the Vice President, External Relations, leading a team responsible for all aspects of Forté’s fundraising initiatives, including securing and managing academic and corporate partnerships, expanding donor identification, cultivation, and stewardship, and securing financial support from grants and foundations. He also oversees the organization's brand, communications, and PR strategy, as well as Forté’s technology platforms. He brings almost 10 years of work in the technology industry, including working for Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard, and almost 20 years of experience in higher education. He has extensive experience in management education as he served as the Assistant Dean for the full-time MBA program at the University of Texas at Austin and Executive Director for the undergraduate business program at the University of Denver, where in both roles he oversaw recruitment marketing, admissions, academic advising, student affairs, and career services.
Most recently, Daniel has been focused on continuing and professional education, where he has led multiple teams at UT Austin and UT System across a portfolio of academic courses, master's degrees, and training programs.
Arrion Rathsack
Vice President, Programs
Arrion is the Vice President, Programs at Forté, leading a team responsible for developing and implementing programs across college, pre-MBA, MBA and professional audiences. This includes content development, program management, event operations, and enrollment marketing.
Prior to Forté, Arrion acquired more than 15 years of experience in graduate business education including strategic planning, recruiting/admissions, student services, and alumni relations at major public and private universities, including the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas in Austin, W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University, and the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University. Arrion earned a BSBA in Business from the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona. She lives in Austin, Texas with her partner Ben, their two children, and their dog Bandit.
- Forté Team
- Programs
- Development
Krystal Brooks
Scott Brownlee
Stephanie Clark
Kristin Coleman
Libby Davis
Sarah Duerr
Wendy Dukes
Karen Gilbert
Melissa Graham
Janel Hanserd
Rachel Harrington
Katy Hittner
Katie Huber
Remy Kauffmann
Leah Lattimore
Ashley Lautzenheiser
Nadine Lin
Beth Lopez
Megan McMahon
Amy Orlov
Toni Phelan
Jen Rios
Claudia Rodriguez-Spencer
Diana Saiz
Jen Salvador
Tiffany Schulze
Lisa Standley
Olivia Suarez
Jessica Walker
Arrion Rathsack
Wendy Dukes
Leah Lattimore
Amy Orlov
Jen Rios
Ashley Lautzenheiser
Kristin Coleman
Libby Davis
Sarah Duerr
Janel Hanserd
Katy Hittner
Nadine Lin
Tiffany Schulze
Melissa Graham
Olivia Suarez
Toni Phelan
Claudia Rodriguez-Spencer
Daniel Garza
Krystal Brooks
Jen Salvador
Rachel Harrington
Scott Brownlee
Karen Gilbert
Katie Huber
Remy Kauffmann
Jessica Walker
Beth Lopez
Megan McMahon
Diana Saiz