Amanda Rivera-Flores

Amanda Rivera-Flores is an independent consultant focused on philanthropic advising, strategic planning and management consulting for a variety of non-profit organizations and private foundations.

Before starting her own consultancy in Puerto Rico, Amanda served as the former Director of Philanthropic Advising. Amanda is also the former Executive Director of the Youth Development Institute (YDI), Puerto Rico's only children's research, policy and advocacy organization and Kids Count partner. Under her leadership, YDI doubled in size, significantly increased the visibility of child poverty in Puerto Rico, and advocated successfully for effective policies to increase economic security of children and families, particularly during natural disasters. She also co-founded Mentes Puertorriqueñas en Acción (Puerto Rico Minds in Action), a network to empower social change agents in Puerto Rico.

Prior to her tenure at YDI, Amanda dedicated her career to increasing opportunities for children and youth, first as a middle school teacher for Teach for America and later as the Director of Development and Community Relations at a school in Harlem. Shifting to a policy focus, she served as a Public Policy Associate at edCount in Washington D.C. and later directed federal policy efforts for Youth Villages where she specialized in child welfare, juvenile justice and youth mental health issues.

Amanda has a bachelor’s degree in Government and Sociology from Harvard College where she focused on strategies to eliminate inequality and poverty in Puerto Rico. She received a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, with a specialization in Social and Public Policy and a focus on childhood and youth issues. Amanda lives in San Juan, Puerto Rico with her husband and son.