Mara Lopez

Mara joined the Service in 2016 as a Presidential Management Fellow (PMF). Her appointment began with the National Wildlife Refuge System in headquarters and led to working with the International Affairs Program and the Office of Business Management and Operations where she was converted into a project management role. In this capacity, she led a complex space consolidation project in Denver, Colorado, and worked on the JAO Project Management Team, supporting our reorganization of budget and administration to a centralized, shared services model.

This reorganization led to new opportunities across the Service, including the creation of Regional Business Offices within the Office of Regional Director in each of the Service’s eight regions. Mara began serving as the Regional Business Advisor in the South Atlantic Gulf and Mississippi Basin Interior Regions in October of 2019, tasked with guiding the Regional Business Office in Atlanta, Georgia. Under her direction, this small team of professional budget and administrative personnel advises the Regional Director, the Regional Directorate Team and their staff on business matters, provides budgetary support and guidance, evaluates various business and management practices for improvement and efficiencies, supports workforce initiatives, oversees internal controls, and manages regional office operations.

Prior to joining the Service, Mara spent about 10 years working in the private sector in marketing and communications. She holds an MBA in management and entrepreneurship from Baldwin Wallace University in Berea, Ohio and a BFA from the University of Akron in Ohio.

Mara enjoys spending time outdoors, hiking trails with her husband and their dog. She also is an avid gardener and loves to travel to national parks and refuges.