Maria Adler has been with the Simons Foundation since 2002 and is currently the Director of Special Projects. In this role she established a program focused on increasing employment opportunities for people with autism, implementing hiring and internship programs at the foundation and launching a grantmaking initiative that provides funding for organizations to create similar programs. Prior to this role, Maria served as the Foundation’s Chief Financial Officer for 15 years where she worked closely with the founders to grow the organization from start-up to over 200 employees. Maria built and managed the foundation’s finance, human resources, operations, information technology, and facilities management functions. Prior to joining the Simons Foundation, Maria was a Vice President at JPMorgan Chase where she held various positions in product and operations management.

Maria earned a Master of Business Administration from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Villanova University.