Ashley Simons ’18 and fiancé, Adam Hathaway ’17, pose together at Yule Ball, Pomona’s Winter Formal.
Simons’ Sagehen pride began as a student, cheering on Hathaway at his cross-country meets.
Moment captured: Simons and Hathaway studying for vector calculus — where it all added up.
Simons with her fellow Sagehens in their sponsor group — peer mentoring in action.
Pomona College’s broad and rigorous liberal arts curriculum has helped Ashley Simons ’18 succeed professionally. But, she says, it was a vector calculus class that unexpectedly changed her life.
As director of product at Salesforce, a tech company focused on relationship management, Simons has spent her entire career moving up its ranks — an increasingly rare path in an industry that thrives on constant movement and reinvention. But what has kept her at Salesforce is the opportunity to keep learning and tackling new challenges, she says.
That drive for continuous growth began at Pomona. Pursuing a mathematics major with minors in computer science and history equipped Simons with the tools that truly matter for a rising leader in the tech world.
Now, presenting her work to thousands of people at high-profile conferences and product launches, Simons draws on those experiences at Pomona. For example, she’s reminded daily of the value of her history coursework. “Even though I don’t use history knowledge for my job, the way it taught me to write is vitally important in my role,” she says. The math courses she took emphasized articulation as much as analysis, which trained her to present ideas, defend her findings and collaborate thoughtfully.
One of those math classes, a vector calculus class taught by Prof. Shahriari in the Seeley G. Mudd Building, even led her to her fiancé, Adam Hathaway ’17. “We started as classmates solving problem sets together and became friends from that,” Simons says. “Now, we are getting married this summer.”
The profound role Pomona played in Simons’ life is why she has supported the Pomona Annual Fund every year since graduation. Giving back, she says, was something her parents instilled in her early on, as a way of honoring the places that shape who you become.
“For me, Pomona is one of those places,” Simons says. “I give to the areas that meant the most to me, like the math department and study abroad, because I want future Sagehens to have the same opportunities.”
When it comes to giving back, Simons encourages other young alumni to start small. Attending regional chapter events, mentoring current students and making small gifts are meaningful ways to support the College.
“You don’t have to start with a big check,” she says. “Start where you are and grow your gift when you grow.”
Join Ashley Simons ’18 by making a gift to the Pomona Annual Fund and support the people, programs and opportunities that have defined you. If 1,500 Sagehens make a gift by June 30, Pomona’s Board of Trustees will unlock an additional $150,000 for our students.