Financial stress is the most common and persistent form of stress we face, impacting our physical and mental health, the health of our communities, and our satisfaction in our work. Join NHSA for Financial Wellness Thursdays for Leaders with The Beans (a financial wellness company founded by a former educator and a Head Start alumna!). This program is built specifically for Head Start/Early Head Start program leaders, to help you learn how you can stress less about money – and help your team stress less, too.

Presenters:

Melissa Pancoast, CEO & FOUNDER
Melissa Pancoast is the founder and CEO of The Beans, a financial care company changing the way hard working Americans relate to their finances. She started her career as a teacher, where she saw the impact of financial stress firsthand in her community. After completing graduate work at the University of Oxford, she served as a researcher in the University of Oxford’s Center for Evidence-Based Interventions. Her work, a series of “Economic Strengthening” workshops has been shared with 300 million people worldwide as a pillar in the global emergency response to COVID-19. Melissa has a MS in Evidence-Based Social Intervention from the University of Oxford and a BS in Political Science from Stetson University.

Alex Orozco, FOUNDING DESIGNER + HEAD OF PRODUCT DESIGN 
Alex Orozco is the founding Designer and Head of Product Design at The Beans. As a Head Start alumna, she knows the power of Head Start first hand. In college, she taught English to teachers in Mexico and recruited educators. She earned her MSEd in Teaching English as a Second Language and started her career as a 5th grade ESL math teacher. Additionally, Orozco also coached basketball and chess to help pay down nearly 90k in student loans. She is responsible for the design and user experience of the app, The Beans brand, and the Customer Success team.