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Anne Wintroub
Anne Wintroub
00:51

Anne Wintroub

AT&T

Oakland, CA USA

"With innovating comes a certain human connection. You have to know what people need in order to innovate. You have to really connect and respect people."

Career Roadmap

Anne's work combines: Business, Non-Profit Organizations, and Learning / Being Challenged

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Day In The Life

Director of Social Innovation

I lead a national foundation portfolio designed to empower communities and resonate with business.

01:36

Day In The Life Of A Director of Social Innovation

My Day to Day

I work with about 60 different organiztions all across the country and we contribute resources to help them develop and grow. My main work centers around the AT&T Aspire Accelerator. My typical day consists of a lot of phone calls and writing time. When I am traveling, I do a lot of public speaking and I attend conferences and meetings. I also spend time visiting our different AT&T headquarters across the country working with colleagues to get them involved in the programs we are developing.

Skills & Education

Advice for getting started

Back in the day, when we were first starting one of our scholarship programs through the accelerator, we weren't seeing the completion rates we were expecting. I kept waking up in the middle of the night panicking and wondering what we were doing wrong. I had to shift my perspective and realize that the purpose of the program was so that people could gain skills and that was all that mattered. Developing programs for impact go through these struggles and you have to stick with it and grow.

Here's the path I took:

  • High School

  • Bachelor's Degree

    American Studies

    University of California-Davis

  • Bachelor's Degree

    English Language and Literature, General

    University of California-Davis

  • Graduate Degree

    Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts, General

    New York University

Life & Career Milestones

My path in life took a while to figure out

  • 1.

    Attended the University of California, Davis where I received my bachelor’s degree in American studies and English.

  • 2.

    Immediately after graduating, I moved to New York City and attended New York University where I received my master’s degree in performance studies.

  • 3.

    In school, my main interests were thinking in interdisciplinary ways and making connections between subjects and projects, which has influenced me throughout my career.

  • 4.

    Began my career in public broadcasting where I worked at various PBS stations in New York City, Boston, and San Francisco.

  • 5.

    After five years in that industry, my passion for education and ensuring people had access to information led me to working as a Deputy Director for the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library.

  • 6.

    With little qualifications, I managed to get a job leading the corporate social responsibility efforts in California for AT&T, an opportunity that came out of nowhere.

  • 7.

    I'm now the Director of Social Innovation for the AT&T Foundation where I've helped develop the Aspire Accelerator, providing resources and support for startups in the ed-tech sector.

  • 8.

    In 2012, I founded The Augie Fund, inspired by my son, who has an eye condition called amblyopia—the nonprofit helps other families with inadequate insurance pay for glasses.

Defining Moments

How I responded to discouragement

  • THE NOISE

    Messages from Myself:

    God, what are we doing wrong??

  • How I responded:

    Back in the day, when we were first starting one of our scholarship programs through the accelerator, we weren't seeing the completion rates we were expecting. I kept waking up in the middle of the night panicking and wondering what we were doing wrong. I had to shift my perspective and realize that the purpose of the program was so that people could gain skills and that was all that mattered. Developing programs for impact go through these struggles and you have to stick with it and grow.

Experiences and challenges that shaped me

Click to expand

  • I have two kids, so balancing work life and home life is always a challenge and it never gets easier. I've learned to enjoy it over the years and now my work allows me certain levels of flexibility to manage my various responsibilities.