Born in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, Marshall alumna, Carmen L. Herrera ’89, recalls struggling with English in primary school but found that she excelled at math, because “it didn’t require a translation,” she said.

In fact, she was so good with numbers a bookkeeping class in high school led her to realize she could make a good living with her skill and ultimately compelled her to pursue a degree in business from the Marshall School of Business. She would later go on to become a CPA.

“Neither of my parents were in business, so the value for somebody with no prior experience or exposure to the business world made all the difference. It just opened up so many doors,” she said. “My education at Marshall prepared me for corporate life.”

She began her career with Ernst & Young LLP (EY) and later held positions in finance and operations with organizations such as Paramount Pictures, Univisa, Inc., Hughes Communications, and StarGuide Digital Networks. She held leadership roles within Sempra Energy, and in 2007 became the first Latina director of the firm.

With her years of corporate experience, Herrera decided to flex her entrepreneurial muscle and give back to the community she came from. She recently launched a juice enterprise, Vida for Vitality (Sabi Juice). Inspired by the need for healthy food and services in underserved communities, Sabi promotes brain health, she said.

“The Latino population in particular has high rates of diabetes and there are a lot of studies about how communities of color generally tend to have higher rates of brain health issues because they have either experienced trauma or are living paycheck to paycheck,” said Herrera. “Accessibility to healthy food is at the core of everything we do.” She keeps her products affordable, and also markets healthy living tips.