When Kathy (Anter) Orovitz ’04 enrolled at Bryant University in 1997, she was already juggling more than most students. By day, she was working full-time in banking and volunteering at Meeting Street, an integrated educational environment that supports students with disabilities. At night, she was pursuing her undergraduate degree, often after long shifts that stretched her energy but never hindered her determination.
Two decades later, Orovitz serves as president and CEO of Navigant Credit Union, Rhode Island’s largest credit union with more than $3.7 billion in assets and 26 branches. She is also one of the key figures behind Bryant’s new Navigant Credit Union Field House, a $5 million partnership that reflects her own path of persistence, community, and connection.
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Orovitz grew up in Cumberland, Rhode Island, in a family with deep ties to Bryant. Her father and brother are both alumni, and her father’s career in banking helped shape her own path. “My dad has always been my mentor,” she says. “He’s really the reason I got into banking. He was my guidepost, my North Star.”
At 18, shortly after graduating high school, she began working as a teller at Eastland Bank. “Of course, I resisted it. I wanted to watch soap operas and eat Fritos,” she recalls with a laugh. “But that wasn’t an option in my family. We had a strong work ethic.”
That early role sparked an interest in financial services that grew as she moved from Eastland to Fleet Bank. Along the way, she earned her associate’s degree at the Community College of Rhode Island. She then enrolled in night classes at Bryant with her sights set on a bachelor’s degree.
“It was probably the tougher path to take, but it was my path, and it meant something to me,” she says. “When you’re working full time and paying your own way, you take it seriously.”
Bryant shaped not only her professional development, but also her personal life. While taking night classes, Orovitz was introduced to her future husband, fellow Bulldog Dan Orovitz ’00 ’08MBA. The first meeting — when a mutual friend from Meeting Street asked Kathy to deliver a sealed note to Dan, who was enrolled in the same oceanography course — led to study sessions, friendship and, eventually, a casual first date following Kathy’s birthday dinner with family.
“A year later, we were married,” says Orovitz, who admits she still doesn't know what was in the note that sealed her fate. The pair has a daughter, Alexandra, who, at age two, got to cheer on her mom at her hard-earned Commencement ceremony.
That sense of community bonds would continue to guide Orovitz’s path.
After 11 years at Bank Rhode Island, where she led retail at the Providence corporate office and built her experience in marketing and business development, Orovitz worked for a stint at Sovereign Bank. The commute to Boston and the scale of the institution, however, didn’t align with her values.
“I realized I needed to be in an environment where I could see my impact,” she says. “I loved community banking, where the work feels personal and connected.”
In 2009, she acted on that conviction by writing a letter directly to Navigant Credit Union’s CEO. She explained her family’s connection to Navigant — originally Credit Union Central Falls, where her family members all had their first bank accounts — and expressed her desire to contribute. On St. Patrick's Day of that year, a particularly lucky one for the Irish-born Orovitz, she accepted an offer to join Navigant as head of retail.
“When I started, Navigant had nine branches. Today we have 26,” she notes. She oversaw branch expansion, developed digital services, and built out new business growth strategies.
In August of 2022, following a national search, she was named CEO. She was reluctant to go for the job, but her mentors, including her father, convinced her she was ready. “It was probably the hardest thing I ever did,” she says. “But all the preparation I put into that process is work I still use every day.”
Orovitz says her role at Navigant is centered around helping neighbors and the community.
“We're doing the right thing when nobody's looking,” she says. “That's the mission for me, and I hire people with the same passion.”
Her leadership has been recognized across Rhode Island. In March of 2023, Bryant honored Orovitz with the Kati C. Machtley Businesswoman of the Year Award at the university’s 26th annual Women’s Summit, attended by more than 1,000 women leaders across the region. The award highlighted her rise from teller to CEO and her dedication to mentoring.
“I will never forget the impact my mentors and colleagues have had on my career,” she said in her acceptance remarks. “And I am 100 percent committed to returning the favor.”
That same commitment is evident in Navigant’s $5 million gift to Bryant University to create the Navigant Credit Union Field House. The 43,000-square-foot facility, opening this fall, is designed to serve both athletes and the larger campus community. It will feature expanded training and wellness areas, new locker rooms, a media strategy space, and enhanced seating for fans and alumni, including a dedicated "Black and Gold Club" viewing space for VIPs.
The partnership, though, expands beyond the facility. “This is about more than putting a name on a building,” she says. “It’s about alignment of mission and community.”
The partnership formalizes new opportunities for students, including paid internships each year in a range of critical areas. Navigant will also expand its campus presence with new services and financial literacy programs, helping students prepare for careers and personal success. New affinity debit and credit cards, emblazoned with Bryant's black and gold, will be available for faculty, staff, students, and alumni to show their Bryant pride.
“People often look at a bank and just see a branch,” she explains. “But there’s so much more behind the scenes: marketing, IT, compliance, cybersecurity. That’s where Bryant students come in. This partnership creates a real pipeline.”
For Orovitz, the Bryant/Navigant partnership is the latest chapter in a career marked by persistence and connection. As she helps open doors to the field house and to internship opportunities, she is building new paths for Bryant students to experience the same mentorship and community that fortified her along the way.
“To me, Bryant represents community," she says. "Even as it grows, it still feels personal, and that’s true for Navigant, as well."