Rebecca White

Rebecca White, director of university events, was born in upstate New York. Her father’s military service and subsequent work in marketing caused the family to move often before finally settling in Massachusetts. The second oldest of four, with two brothers and one sister, Rebecca is close to her family and spends as much time as she can with them, her daughter, and a very large cat. Rebecca graduated from Western New England College with a degree in psychology in 1990, later realizing that she had a love for management. Much of her early work experience was spent as a manager in retail with The Gap in Boston, managing stores on Newberry Street and Faneuil Hall. At Yankee Candle Co. in South Deerfield, Rebecca held different positions within the retail division and was part of their transition from a private to a public company. In 2009, she joined UMass Amherst as the manager of Hillside, the Chancellor’s House, and eventually joined the Community Relations and University Events team, where she has remained. Celebrating the university through events like commencement, groundbreakings, and ribbon cuttings with an amazing team of event professionals and students makes her work enjoyable.