Donna Ritchie

Vice President of Business Development at Merrimack College

Donna Ritchie is Vice President of Business Development at Merrimack College where she leads marketing, enrollment, and admissions strategy across the institution’s full portfolio of programs. She also supports Merrimack’s expansion in corporate events and innovative corporate partnerships. Donna brings years of experience in educational program innovation, growth strategy, and partnership development experience connecting education to workforce needs to this role.

Previously, Donna was a co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of Meteor Learning, a university services company that partnered with higher education institutions to develop and scale online and workforce-aligned programs. Under her leadership, Meteor built strategic partnerships with universities and employers to expand access to career-relevant education. Following Meteor’s acquisition by Noodle, she served as Senior Vice President of Noodle’s University to Employer business, where she helped scale and grow programs that connect education pathways to areas of workforce shortage in education and healthcare.

Earlier in her career, Donna founded K-20 Research, a market research and strategy firm advising K-12 and higher education organizations on product development, market positioning, and growth opportunities. She also served as Vice President of Financial Operations for Global Product Development and Publishing at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt where she oversaw financial operations and investment strategy for the company’s global education product portfolio including digital platforms and curriculum products.

Donna began focusing on education as a Principal at The Parthenon Group (now EY-Parthenon) where she supported the Education Practice which advises education, media, and publishing organizations. She studied economics and Japanese at University of Pennsylvania and holds an MBA with Honors from Harvard Business School.