A native of Yankton, South Dakota, Laura has been active in the arts community from a young age, participating in singing, dancing, and visual arts. As an undergraduate, Laura studied Journalism and Art at the University of Oregon. She was also involved in service-learning initiatives, such as leading student trips to New Orleans to learn about disaster relief, and San Diego to learn about border and immigration issues—encouraging people to consider the larger picture, and to design and implement solutions to bring ideas into action.

For two years, Laura served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Lesotho, a small African country, teaching English and health in public primary schools, and creating large-scale public murals for HIV/AIDS awareness. During her experience in the Peace Corps, she frequently observed the importance of the arts in cross-cultural collaboration, exploring ideas and designing innovative solutions.

Professionally, Laura worked in media and communications penning op-eds and designing media campaigns for health and science clients in New York City and higher-education clients in Minneapolis. This summer, she worked as a finance and strategy intern for Partners in Food Solutions, an independent non-profit in Minneapolis focused on strengthening food security, improving nutrition and increasing economic development across Africa’s food-processing sector.

Laura is a current Full-Time MBA candidate at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management, focusing on strategic management and innovation. She is a member of the Global Business Students Association, co-founder of the Arts & Business Club, and co-president of Net Impact. She strives to apply her business education to work that furthers her commitment to corporate social and environmental responsibility.