Winner of the StartUp Worcester award, Rivera-Flores quit the corporate world in 2015 to start her own businesses: The Learning Hub, offering low-cost tutoring and free classes in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) to K-6 students at local libraries; and Woopreneur, a branch of IGWorcesterMA, connecting the entrepreneurs through events and workshops. She grew Learning Hub to 10 libraries in less than a year and found it a headquarters at art store C.C. Lowell.
Rivera-Flores is working on an activity book for children aged 6-12 called “Full STEAM Ahead.” She and her husband, Jamie Flores, have two daughters, Brooklyn and Evian Flores.
What person do you look up to? Gary Vaynerchuk, for his honesty, rawness and good sense of consumer strategy
Who gave you the best career advice? When I quit the corporate world, my husband said, “What took you so long?” It was the most insightful phrase he’s ever said to me.
Meet the other 40 Under Forty winners for 2017
Asmar N. Akman – Akman Enterprises Inc.
Brendan Aylward – Unified Health and Performance
Greta Bajrami Campoverde – Golden Group Construction Corp.
Kathryn Behan – UMass Memorial Healthcare
Heather Belair – Bay State Savings Bank
Neil Callahan – R.H. White Construction
Michelle L. Cote, Esq. – Law Offices of Richard S. Ravosa
Julianne Dahrooge – Chan & Dahrooge Financial Group, LLC
Patrick J. DiGregorio – Veterans Inc.
Courtney Ross Escobar – Doucette & LaRose, LLC
Robert Fecteau – BirchTree Bread Co.
Hilary Gardner – The Davis Cos.
Ashleigh C. Gelinas, Esq. – Gelinas & Ward, LLP
Avra Hoffman – BirchTree Bread Co.
Maryann C. Johnson – Oak Hill CDC
Kevin G. Johnson – O’Connor, Maloney & Company, P.C.
Heather Mangione – United Way of Central Massachusetts
Jay Merrill – Clifford & Rano Associates
Meghan E. Montaner – The Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts
Edward Murphy – Baystate Investment Fund
Joy Rachelle Murrieta – Main IDEA
Dr. Milka Njoroge, PharmD – Century Homecare, LLC
Andrew B. Palumbo – Worcester Polytechnic Institute
John T. Pitcavage – Endless Energy
Julia Randall, M.D. – Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center
Keith Reardon – Commonwealth Consulting Group, LLC
Jamie Salois – Atlas Distributing
Lindiana Semidei – Raices Latin Dance
Jody Staruk – Consigli Construction Co., Inc.
Francisco Torres – Town of Westborough
Abel Travis – Hanover Insurance Group
Elizabeth Tripp – Hanover Insurance Group
Alexis G. Vallejos – Columbia Tech
David Viens – Bowditch & Dewey, LLP
