Dr. Jennifer Isern '89

Political Science

Jennifer Isern

Dr. Jennifer Isern

Degree: Political Science, 1989

Profession: World Bank Senior Manager, Global Finance & Markets, Asia Pacific Region

Lecture: International Development: From the Asia-Pacific to Montana

With 27 years of international finance experience across more than 65 countries, Dr. Jennifer Isern is a global expert in financial sector development, including access to finance for the poorest populations. She previously served as regional manager of access to finance for South Asia with the International Finance Corporation and served as a visiting professor at Princeton University. For 13 years, she worked for the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor based in the World Bank Group, including serving in the management team, leading work in Africa and China, and launching several global initiatives. With CARE International, she launched and managed projects in microfinance, community development, and girls’ education in Africa. Isern has published widely on international issues, financial sector development and financial inclusion, and is a founding member of the board of directors for PAMIGA, a network of rural microfinance institutions that reaches 1.2 million rural people in Africa. In 2015, she was the recipient of UM's Distinguished Alumnus Award.