Meet Joan

Raised in New Hampshire, Joan was the first in her family to attend college, receiving a degree in biology from Boston College. She went on to receive two masters’ degrees: one in public health and one in business administration from Columbia University in New York City, where she launched a career in commercial lending and municipal bond finance at Standard & Poor’s bond rating agency.

At Standard and Poor’s, Joan headed the healthcare, higher education and not-for-profit rating group. In 1997, she returned to the Boston area and spent more than 20 years working closely with both academic and community physicians and staff in strategic planning and business development for Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

A resident of Mid-Cambridge for the past 26 years, Joan is a committed community leader, having actively served both the Mid-Cambridge Neighborhood Association (past president) and Cambridge Streets for All (past chairman). Her volunteer experience also includes serving the Charles River Conservancy as board chair and finance committee chair and she was a founding board member of Caring Canines Pet Therapy.

Today, Joan shares her home with her husband, Adane Dessie, and two rescue pups, Pippi and Bo.

She will bring a strong background in planning and municipal finance to the City Council as well as her ability to listen to community input.

Her experience in complex organizations has honed her ability to see the ‘big picture’ and understand how policies and programs can impact residents, neighborhoods and businesses.