In December, Lauren Gonzalez, WG’26, welcomed her third son. In January, she walked back into the Wharton classroom.
There was no dramatic pause between those milestones. Just careful planning, a color-coded family calendar, and a belief that ambition and motherhood don’t have to take turns.
“Juggling everything is hard,” she says. “But it’s completely doable. And it’s absolutely worth it.”
Choosing Wharton
Gonzalez started her career at a software startup before joining Shell in Texas, where she’s spent more than a decade in roles spanning deepwater engineering projects in the Gulf of Mexico to global IT advisory.
“My background was very STEM-focused,” she says. “I had never taken business classes. I knew an MBA was something I wanted because I didn’t see myself as only a technical contributor in the future.”
As she began traveling globally for work and supporting senior leadership, Gonzalez started researching programs. Wharton stood out immediately for its academic rigor, global network, and emphasis on lifelong learning.
“The idea that I will have career services and can audit elective classes or take an executive education course long after graduation really resonated,” she says. “It’s not just an investment in two years. It’s a lifetime of support and community.”
She chose the San Francisco cohort for both logistics and learning.
“The time zone works better commuting from Houston and, with two airports in the Bay Area, flights are very manageable,” she explains. “But I also liked the idea of being in a tech-forward entrepreneurial environment and having the campus contained in one building, so students have ample opportunities to connect and build relationships. It’s a very special experience.”
Gonzalez adds: “I also liked the ability to take classes on the Philadelphia campus and with the Global cohort in my second year, so I could broaden my network and customize my schedule.”
Growing a Family During the Program
Gonzalez started the program with a 3- and 1-year-old, knowing she and her husband hoped to grow their family.
“During orientation, some classmates said they’d wait until after Wharton to have kids,” she recalls. “I never saw school and family as taking turns. I knew I’d likely welcome another baby during the program.”
And she did. Gonzalez’s third child was born in December of her second year.
Far from isolating, the experience brought her closer to her classmates, especially with the two other women in her cohort who also had babies during the program. “We supported each other,” she says. “My classmates would ask for updates and were genuinely excited for us.” They also organized a baby shower for one of the other women who was expecting her first child.
The faculty and administration were also very supportive, notes Gonzalez. “They know we’re juggling work, school, flights, life. I was always upfront about my due date and travel limitations, and I made a plan early on to mitigate conflicts and communicated clearly with professors and my classmates.”
That transparency, she says, made all the difference.
Her first experience with Wharton set the tone. Knowing that she would need to pump breastmilk at orientation while her baby was home in Texas, she notified the administration in advance. “When I arrived, there was a mini fridge in my room and a map of lactation rooms on campus,” she says. “That level of thoughtfulness made everything feel more manageable from day one.”
Making It Work
Gonzalez is candid: balance takes a lot of support and planning.
“We don’t have family in Houston, so this only works because my husband is fully on board,” she says. “When I’m traveling for class, he takes care of everything at home so I can focus on school.”
She points out that Wharton provides the full two-year academic calendar in advance, which helps with planning. The couple maintains a color-coded calendar and reviews it frequently, like a weekly stand-up meeting.
Gonzalez blocks 4–8 p.m. on the calendar for family time: dinner, play, bedtime. After the kids are asleep, she shifts to coursework, often studying until midnight. She and her husband also intentionally schedule date nights, and every few months, she splurges on a deep house cleaning.
And when she walks in the door after a class weekend?
“I turn off the part of my brain that wants to judge how the house looks,” she says, laughing. “If everyone is happy and healthy, that’s what matters. I can ignore the dishes in the kitchen.”
The first term, Gonzalez says, was the hardest. “It’s a change of pace from normal family and work life. We kept asking, ‘What’s working? What’s not?’ We adjusted and learned to let go of perfection.”
Finding Immediate Value
When Shell went through a reorganization — and Gonzalez either needed to find a new job at a different company or land a new position at Shell — she experienced firsthand the strength of the Wharton network.
“My classmates checked in constantly, and offered to connect me with people at their companies,” she says. “It made a stressful time feel less uncertain. I knew I had options.”
Gonzalez ultimately stayed at Shell, but the experience reinforced the value of her classmates.
Beyond the network, immersive experiences like Global Business Week (GBW), Global Modular Courses (GMCs), and Block Weeks have broadened her perspective. Gonzalez studied finance in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) — which was directly relevant to her energy background — and sustainability in luxury retail in Italy.
“In energy, we talk about sustainability all the time,” she says. “But seeing how luxury brands approach it gave me a completely different lens. I came to Wharton to learn how other industries think. That exposure is invaluable.”
Gonzalez adds that GMCs and Block Weeks allow deeper relationship-building across cohorts and years. “You spend full days together, have dinners, and really get to know people. Those bonds are powerful.”
Advice for Parents
So, is Wharton worth it, especially with young children?
“Yes,” Gonzalez says without hesitation. “I’m a different person because of Wharton.”
For other parents considering the EMBA program, she shares this advice:
Be honest about your reality. “Be clear with professors and teammates about your schedule and responsibilities. Most people appreciate knowing upfront what you’re balancing.”
Build your village. “For me, that’s my husband. This journey is a team effort, and having a strong foundation makes all the difference.”
Plan ahead but stay flexible. “I live by the academic calendar. I map things out early and revisit the plan often. Something will always shift, so you adjust and keep going.”
Be clear about your priorities. “You won’t make every event or say yes to everything. Decide what matters most to you.”
Most importantly, she encourages parents not to wait for the “perfect” time to go back to school.
“As a parent, you’re already managing a thousand moving parts,” she says. “Wharton builds on that strength. It’s one more thing to plan for — but parenthood doesn’t hold you back here; it prepares you. And if it’s something you truly want, you’ll find a way to make it happen.”
By Meghan Laska
Posted: May 4, 2026
