Saying goodbye

Three years ago, I built a simple website from my dorm room at Harvard with one question: “Are you a young woman interested in venture capital?” I had no expectations, just a quiet hope that a few people might feel the same way I did. I went to sleep that night thinking maybe a handful of people would sign up. The next morning, my phone was buzzing.

What followed became one of the most meaningful experiences of my life.

From that single post, Girls Into VC grew into a global community of more than 10,000 members across 75+ countries. We launched fellowships, externships, chapters, summits, a podcast, newsletters, mentorship programming, and resources that reached thousands of young women. The accomplishments are something I am incredibly proud of, but they are only a small part of the story.

The real story is what this community has meant to me.

Girls Into VC transformed me in ways I could never have predicted. When I started this, I was quiet and painfully shy. Leading this community forced me to grow into someone more confident, more grounded, and more capable than the nineteen-year-old who hit “publish” on that first website. I learned how to manage a team (mostly by making mistakes and apologizing for them). I learned how to write emails, how to run meetings, how to stay steady when everything felt chaotic, and how to build something even when I didn’t know how. I’m still very much a work in progress, but Girls Into VC shaped me in the most profound ways.

It also opened doors I never imagined would be possible for me at this age. Because of this community, I got to share our mission on a TEDx stage, be recognized by Forbes, and work in jobs I once only dreamed about. None of these milestones were ever the goal, but they became reminders of what can happen when people believe in you and when you try to build something with intention.

But more than anything, GIVC gave me the gift of meeting hundreds (maybe over a thousand) extraordinary people. Students, founders, VCs, chapter leads, supporters, and people who simply reached out for advice. I’ve taken calls with so many young women who reminded me of myself: ambitious, unsure, hopeful, and searching for where they fit. Those conversations have been some of the most special moments of my life. Mentorship is the reason I’m here today, and being able to offer even a fraction of what was given to me is something I will always treasure.

I am deeply grateful for every single person who has touched this community. To those who opened the newsletters each week, followed our social media, attended our events, mentored students, launched chapters, joined teams, gave feedback, offered advice, or simply believed in us—you are the heart of GIVC. Your generosity built something none of us could have built alone.

With that gratitude comes the hardest part of this letter.

After three years, I have decided to step down as CEO of Girls Into VC.

This wasn’t a decision made overnight. I started GIVC my freshman fall, and now I’m a senior who’s about to graduate. So much of the magic of this community came from the fact that I was living the same life as the people we were serving—navigating classes, internships, imposter syndrome, recruiting cycles, the pressure to find your path at eighteen or nineteen. That closeness to what students were feeling is what allowed me to build GIVC the way I did.

But that won’t be my reality forever, and that’s okay. From the very beginning, it was important to me that Girls Into VC was built to outlast me—that it would be strong enough to grow, evolve, and become something even bigger in the hands of new leaders. Stepping back now, while the organization is thriving and surrounded by people who understand the mission as deeply as I do, is exactly the moment I hoped would come. This is the chance to ensure that GIVC continues long after I graduate.

This decision comes with a full heart and complete confidence in what comes next. I will continue to support GIVC as Board Chairman (chairwoman?), offering guidance and continuity, while creating space for new leadership to carry the organization forward.

I am proud beyond words to pass the torch to Sarah Phillips as our next CEO. Sarah first reached out to me before she even started college. She went on to start the Princeton chapter, growing it to hundreds of members, and has served as our COO with remarkable compassion, discipline, and vision. Her leadership is steady, thoughtful, and deeply aligned with the mission of this organization. She is exactly who I hoped would one day lead this community.

I am equally thrilled that Suhani Pandya will be stepping into the role of COO. Suhani is a senior in high school and one of the most hardworking and incredibly driven people I’ve ever met. She has contributed to GIVC for years, most recently as our Chief of Staff, and has demonstrated maturity and reliability well beyond her age. Watching her grow into a leader has been one of my favorite parts of this journey.

Though I am stepping back from day-to-day leadership, I’m excited to stay connected in new ways.

I am launching a new newsletter, Partial Sum (name TBD), where I’ll share honest stories, lessons learned, and behind-the-scenes reflections on building a community from scratch. I get so many questions about how GIVC began, how to start something with no resources, how to grow an audience, how to manage a team while you’re still learning, and what it actually feels like to build something from the ground up. My hope is that this newsletter becomes a place where I can tell those stories in a way that’s useful. You can comment or message me with topics you’d love to hear about.

This organization has been the greatest privilege of my life so far. I am who I am because of the people I met through Girls Into VC. Thank you for trusting me, supporting me, challenging me, and allowing me to build something meaningful alongside you. I will carry the lessons, the friendships, the joy, and the sense of purpose this community gave me for the rest of my life.

Girls Into VC will forever be a part of me. And now, in the hands of Sarah and Suhani, it will continue to grow, evolve, and change the face of venture capital exactly as it was always meant to.

With all my gratitude,
Isabella