Peters Family Committed to Business, Isenberg, and UMass

When Chuck and Karen Peters’ daughter, Kristin ’13, applied to business schools back in 2009, the couple—both UMass Amherst alumni—did its best to nudge her toward Isenberg. “We weren’t Isenberg graduates ourselves, but we have a lot of friends who are and they’re all successful,” recalled Karen. Many of Kristin’s fellow Weston High graduates, Karen noted, opted for private schools. But after attending Isenberg’s New Students Orientation and getting energized by Dean Fuller’s remarks to prospective students, Kristin was smitten. Today, the Isenberg finance graduate is an asset management analyst at JP Morgan.

For Chuck and Karen, another nod toward Isenberg was their own commitment to business and business culture. Chuck is President/Owner and Karen is VP of Administration of their own 36-year-old family business, New England Wire Products. Based in Leominster, the company is a full-service manufacturer of product displays. An industry leader, it makes customized racks for Home Depot, Walmart, Staples, and other prominent customers.

On June 14, Chuck and Karen will be the principal honorees at Isenberg’s annual Business Leadership Awards Dinner at the Colonnade Hotel in Boston. Last year’s event attracted 300 alumni and friends of Isenberg to the annual celebration of Isenberg’s soaring reputation and expanding national footprint.

A Growing Family Tradition

Two of Kristin’s younger brothers—Charlie ’16 and George ’18—have followed in her footsteps at Isenberg. A graduating senior in Sport Management, Charlie has applied his Isenberg skills for several summers at the family business in Leominster. After graduation, he will join the business full time, running one of the Leominster factories. George, a Hospitality & Tourism Management major, also plans to join the family business. He has held internships at the Boston Harbor Hotel and, of course, at New England Wire, as (in his mother’s words) a “road warrior” on sales calls.

Chuck, who majored in Mechanical Engineering at UMass, and Karen, who majored in Political Science, have supported Isenberg through gifts to the Dean’s Fund for Excellence and to Isenberg’s Business Leadership Awards. As entrepreneurs and family business owners, they are strong advocates of entrepreneurship education, including Isenberg’s Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship. “Our kids and their generation—many of them want to work for themselves,” remarked Karen. “Let’s give them the tools to succeed in any business role.”