Cristina Lopez is Chief Operating Officer at the Greater Baltimore Committee, where she helps operationalize the region’s most ambitious economic strategies and supports the implementation of Bold Moves, GBC’s new regional brand and multi-year agenda for inclusive growth. Since joining GBC in 2024, she has played a central role in aligning systems, people, and partners to advance the organization’s mission and strengthen the infrastructure behind regional transformation.
Cristina brings deep cross-sector experience spanning philanthropy, higher education access, economic opportunity, and organizational strategy. Prior to GBC, she served as Chief of Strategy & Operations at Last Mile Education Fund, where she led a rapid national growth plan and helped scale support for more than 1,500 community college students nationwide in cybersecurity pathways over the past 18 months. Since 2020, Last Mile has supported more than 2,500 underrepresented students in tech to complete their degrees through grants ranging from $500 to $10,000.
Earlier in her career, Cristina led the launch of Baltimore City’s Mayor’s Scholars Program, a community college promise initiative that exceeded enrollment goals by 34% and improved student retention by 30%. She also launched the Weiss Institute, a partnership of America’s Promise and Say Yes to Education, and developed Baltimore Community Foundation’s early childhood strategy, which helped increase the number of Judy Centers in Baltimore City fourfold through a public-private partnership. She also served as Campaign Director for BCF’s $100 million campaign and has advised philanthropic and nonprofit organizations on strategy, best practices, and program development.
Cristina’s earlier career includes leadership roles in the private sector as Vice President at Wellington Management Company and Vice President of Strategy & Business Development at eHealth Latin America. She began her career in private equity with the Latin Healthcare Fund and in consulting with Deloitte.
A proud native of Minnesota, Cristina was named a Baltimore Sun Woman to Watch in 2025 and previously was featured in the Baltimore Business Journal’s “Faces to Watch.” She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School, an MPA from Harvard Kennedy School, and a BA from Brown University. She is the daughter of an Ecuadorian immigrant and speaks fluent Spanish.