Kimaria Howard-Lewis(she/her)

Kimaria Howard-Lewis is a Business Specialist at a major bank who works directly with small business owners — helping them open accounts, set up payroll, build credit, and navigate the daily stress of running a company. She didn't start out in finance: she bounced between dreams of becoming a pediatrician, an OB-GYN, and a psychologist before realizing she needed to make money and figure things out in real life. She came into banking with management and retail sales experience — including selling bras at Victoria's Secret — and talked her way out of a teller role because she knew her strength was connecting with people, not counting cash. Kimaria's path into finance was shaped by real hardship. After her mom moved across the country, she was left as a single parent with rent to pay, a daughter to raise, and a budget she hadn't adjusted fast enough. She actually got evicted from her apartment during that period. That experience, as painful as it was, became her motivation — and it's exactly why she connects so deeply with small business owners who are pouring everything they have into their dream, just like she was pouring everything into her daughter. One of the most powerful parts of her story is her honesty about being a Black woman in corporate America. She talks openly about hitting a ceiling in her branch, about hiring processes that have bias baked in, and about the importance of speaking up — emailing people in power, asking hard questions, and naming what she sees. She's not bitter about it; she's strategic. She's part of groups like the Black and African American Connection at Wells Fargo and actively advocates for more brown faces in rooms that don't have them. For students of color thinking about finance or banking, Kimaria is proof that you don't need a degree to break in — you need experience, people skills, and the drive to keep learning. She makes anywhere from $54K to $62K depending on bonuses and loan volume, and she's still figuring out her next move, which is refreshing to hear. Her advice: do informational interviews, shadow people virtually, ask questions, and don't hop into a role you can't grow out of. Her story is especially relevant if you're first-gen, navigating single parenthood, or trying to build a career without a traditional four-year path. She's the kind of person who gets it because she's lived it — and she's using that experience every day to help her community build real financial security.