When Summer Gathercole Spencer graduated from the Robins School in 1997, she had a very specific goal in sight:  to become CEO of her own Fortune 500 company. 

She didn’t know what kind of business she wanted to be in, but she knew she would need to get in on the ground floor and work her way up.  She had a business degree with an emphasis on accounting, so she took a job working for a public accounting firm.

“I worked with a great team of people and I liked my work, but something was missing,” said Spencer.  “I felt unfulfilled, so I began volunteering one night a week at a homeless shelter, helping people look for jobs, prepare for interviews, and draft their resumes.  It turned out to be the best part of my week, bar none.”

It wasn’t long before Spencer was asked to become a full-time staff member.  “I knew I could fall back on my accounting if this didn’t work out.  What I discovered was I fell in love with non-profit work.”

A non-profit may seem a far cry from a Fortune 500 company, but Spencer applied herself like any good CEO in training and at 24, became executive director of a non-profit she started with two others.  It wasn’t long before the Workforce Organization for Regional Collaboration (WORC), which helped place low-income and homeless workers, became an affiliate of Goodwill of Greater Washington.  Spencer found herself wearing two hats by taking on the additional role of VP of training and Employment for Goodwill. 

Spencer was becoming noticed for her work.  She left WORC to become executive director of a new group, the Center for Alexandria’s Children, whose focus is child abuse.  It was shortly after that DC mayor Adrian Fenty nominated her to become director of the Department of Employment Services.  At 31, she had more than 500 employees working for her and she was managing an annual budget of $110 million. 

She was recognized in May 2007 by Washingtonian magazine as one of the Top 40 Under 40 in Washington, DC.

Spencer credits much of her success to the Robins School, especially accounting professor Joe Hoyle.  “I really struggled in that class, and by that I mean I really struggled to pass.  You never knew when he was going to call on you so you always had to be prepared for class.  I’m put on the spot every day at work and I know how to carry myself thanks to all that I learned in Professor Hoyle’s class.”

In her spare time, Spencer explores the city with her White Boxer Remy. She has participated in two Marine Corps Marathons.  An only child, her parents moved to Winchester, Virginia from Connecticut to be closer to their daughter.