Becky Pastner has spent 25 years pouring into the Texas community. Working with the St. David’s Foundation for sixteen years, she played a pivotal role in deploying millions of dollars to the Central Texas community.
“Thousands of families and individuals’ lives have improved,” Pastner said. “And that is very meaningful to me.”
Pastner, formerly an adjunct assistant professor at the LBJ School, also previously served as the Vice President of Evaluation and Strategic Learning at St. David's Foundation. She started off her career at St. David’s as an intern while a graduate student at the LBJ School before moving into program officer and then leadership roles.
“Philanthropy in Latin is love of humanity,” Pastner said. “It’s tangibly improving people's lives. I always knew that I was drawn to work that felt like it was making a positive difference in people's lives.”
Prior to her time at St. David’s Foundation, Becky worked in a variety of roles in the social sector spanning education policy, health policy, and immigration legal services. In 2022, she stepped away from St. David’s Foundation to start her own business – Pastner Leadership – where she offers leadership coaching services to individuals, teams, and organizations.
“Reflecting on my career, it's funny, because it’s all about zooming in,” Pastner said. “I studied international political science in college, and then zoomed in to do policy work at the state level, and then focused on regional public health, and now I work with individuals and organizations.”
Growing up in Vermont as a child of anthropologists, Pastner has always been fascinated by the cultural influences of social behavior. After earning a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science at Haverford College, she moved to Austin for what she believed would be a one-year stint as an AmeriCorps volunteer.
However, she quickly became enamored with Central Texas and nonprofit work, leading her to the LBJ School of Public Affairs. Pastner graduated in 2007 and concentrated her studies in Health and Social Policy and earned the Nonprofit Studies graduate portfolio from the RGK Center.
“When I first moved here, having come from the East Coast, I was struck by the warmth and openness that people had,” Pastner said. “It really appealed to me. That creativityand openness to new ideas have helped me feel like this is a really vibrant and exciting place. I’ve never felt bored in Austin.”
Pastner said that one course that stands out during her time at the LBJ School was one offered by the RGK Center and taught by Deborah Edwards, who was the Founding Director of Greenlights for Nonprofit Success, now Mission Capital.
“She taught a really awesome nonprofit strategy course,” Pastner said. “It was case study-based, and included students from the business school and social work school. We got to dive into these real situations and learn the fundamentals of developing strategy, board governance, and program evaluation.”
Pastner worked for five years before attending the LBJ School and continued working for St. David’s Foundation while a student. While there, she connected her journey of learning with practical experience.
“In this age of AI, knowledge is everywhere, but knowledge isn't the same as wisdom,” Pastner said. “It’s important to really lean into that human ability of connecting concepts to experiences.”
The LBJ School gave Pastner a strong background in health policy, which aided in understanding the complex policy and funding contexts in which nonprofits operate.. The multitude of classes offered at the school also helped the philanthropist gain a working understanding of what it takes to lead a nonprofit, as well as writing clearly and succinctly in plain language that helped inform and influence decision-makers. However, Pastner said the expansive alumni network is her favorite resource that the school offers.
“The alumni network is incredible,” Pastner said. “I interact with fellow students from my cohort all the time, or I'm working with folks who went to the LBJ School before or after me. It's an inspiring community of smart people who care. Really, the alumni community is one of the greatest assets of the school.”