Contributor

Bob Hildreth

Founder, Inversant, formerly FUEL Education

Bob is the Founder & Chair of the Board of Inversant. Following a career in Latin American finance at the IMF, Citibank, Drexel Burnham Lambert and his own brokering company, International Bank Services, Bob turned his sights to active philanthropy. Coming from a family of educators and a short stint as a high school history teacher, he subsequently focused his energies on education reform in the US with particular attention to low income populations. Bob turned to his financial background to create a matching savings program that became the basis for Inversant. His intent from the outset has been to use a monetary reward system as a means for motivating a behavior of aspiration. Bob is a dedicated supporter of educational institutions. In addition to co-founding La Vida, Inc. in Lynn, he joined with Boston University to build the Early Childhood Learning Center in Chelsea, MA. Bob is a graduate of Harvard University (Class of ’72) and Johns Hopkins University (Class of ‘75), as well as George Washington University (Class of ‘80). He serves on the governance and advisory boards of several universities including Boston University and The Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. At present he is Chairman of the Board of Overseers at Boston University. He has sponsored research, funded professorships, and developed student internship programs. Bob has won numerous awards including 2009 All-Chelsea Award from the Chelsea Chamber of Commerce, 2009 Give Liberty a Hand Award from the Massachusetts Immigrant & Refugee Advocacy Coalition, Citizen of the Year 2009 from the Rockport Rotary Club, a 2008 Bostonian of the Year by The Boston Globe, 2008 Partner in Pursuit of Justice Award from the Bronx Defenders, 2008 Keepers of the American Dream Award from the National Immigrant Forum, and 2007 Champion of Justice Award from the Greater Boston Legal Services. In 2009 he was especially honored to be the emcee for the Irish Immigration Center’s Solas Award Dinner that honored Irish President Mary McAleese, as well as the emcee for the galas of the Political Asylum/Immigration Representation Project and the Gaston Institute of UMass Boston. He has also been honored as one of El Planeta’s 100 most influential for Latinos in the state of Massachusetts in 2009 and 2010. In June 2010 he spoke at the adult education celebration at Bunker Hill Community College. http://www.inversant.org/