Before transitioning to the Los Angeles area, Marteen was the former Director of Entrepreneurship Programming at Urban Innovation21 and economic development non-profit based in Pittsburgh. During her time there, she implemented community-based entrepreneurship support programs. Marteen managed the development of business education series and led Urban Innovation21’s work in Homewood cultivating entrepreneur development opportunities for Homewood residents, managing strategic relationships with Homewood stakeholders and implementing business district revitalization strategies including spearheading the development of the newly formed business association.
Prior to joining Urban Innovation21, Marteen was the Manager of Community and Economic Development Initiatives at the Homewood Children’s Village. In this role, Marteen worked on several community development projects, producing events promoting arts and culture, implementing school safety programs and identifying business development opportunities for Homewood business owners.
Marteen was born and raised in the Bronx, NY, receiving her BA in Africana and Metropolitan Studies from New York University, and her MS in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon University, Heinz College. Marteen is an alumna of Coro Pittsburgh’s Women in Leadership program, the 2016 recipient of the Athena Young Professional award and a 2016 Pittsburgh Magazine 40 under 40 honoree.
Email: marteen.garay@gmail.com