Our People are Our Greatest Asset

David L. Yowan was named president and CEO of Navient on May 15, 2023. He has been a director of Navient since April 2017.

Dave previously was Executive Vice President and Corporate Treasurer of American Express. He brings over 40 years of experience in risk management, balance sheet management, funding and liquidity, and in integrating financial management with business strategy.

During his time at American Express, he played a key role in navigating the financial crisis of 2008-2009. He led a significant transformation of the company's funding profile and the transition of American Express into a bank holding company.

Prior to joining American Express in 1999, Dave spent time at Citicorp in its global consumer banking business and before that at the Ayco Corporation, now a part of Goldman Sachs.

Dave earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the College of William & Mary and a Master of Management from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University.

Patricia Nash Christel serves as vice president, corporate marketing and communications, and chief of staff to the CEO. Drawing on her more than 25 years of experience in corporate, nonprofit, and higher education management, she manages projects to meet customer needs, build the Navient brand, and grow the business. As chief of staff, she works with the executive leadership team to achieve company goals and deliver value for company stakeholders.

Since joining the company in 2007, she has played leadership roles to successfully roll out new products and campaigns, manage significant public affairs matters, execute major company transactions, improve the customer experience, and create impactful corporate social responsibility programs. Patricia leads Navient’s national partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs of America to bring career and college planning resources to support equity for youth, including those from under-resourced communities.

Patricia earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from Andrews University and an MBA from University of Maryland's Smith School of Business. She lives in Delaware with her family, where she is a Girl Scout volunteer leader and serves on the Delaware Business Roundtable Education Committee.

Joe Fisher serves as executive vice president and chief financial officer. In this role, he manages Navient’s financial strategies and operations, corporate development, and investor relations.

Joe was appointed CFO in 2020.  He previously held various roles including vice president of investor relations and corporate development since joining the company in 2002. His B.S. in finance was earned at the University of Pittsburgh.

He lives with his wife and three children in Northern Virginia and is an avid sports fan. Much of his spare time involves supporting his children’s sports activities of lacrosse, soccer, and basketball.

Joe is a Chartered Financial Analyst and serves on the board of Building Hope, an education nonprofit dedicated to expanding opportunities for students and families in underserved communities.

David Green is executive vice president of Navient and CEO of Earnest, a fintech lender focused on education. David is responsible for Navient’s suite of education financing tools and services, which are offered under the Earnest and NaviRefi brands. He has broadened the scope of our impact, leading Earnest to become a top refinancer of student loans. Under his leadership, strategic initiatives include the acquisition of Going Merry, a national financial aid platform where students match to and apply for scholarships, institutional aid, and government grants through a single free application. He previously served as chief operating officer and chief product officer at Earnest, developing a keen sense for how to deliver on the company’s mission to make higher education attainable and affordable for everyone. During prior roles at Earnest, David oversaw lending product management, design, and engineering. He has also scaled the company from 20 employees to over 250 today and is passionate about training teams. Earnest joined the Navient family of companies in 2018.

Previously, David founded Poplar Finance, a fintech startup focused on eliminating the need for large security deposits in residential rentals. And as the vice president of business operations at the American Mortgage Consultants, he managed large operations teams of 300+ remote employees.

An avid outdoorsman, David enjoys mountaineering, hiking, trail running, and camping. He serves as a mentor for First Round Fast Track, advising early-stage operational leaders. David received his MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. from George Washington University. He lives in the Bay Area with his wife and two young sons.

Steve Hauber serves as executive vice president and chief risk and compliance officer. In this role, he fosters a culture of accountability in the company's operations to ensure Navient maintains sound credit, market, compliance, and operational performance.

From 2014 to 2017, Steve served as Navient's chief audit officer, an independent role that reported directly to the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors.

He joined Sallie Mae in 2003, where he held roles in internal audit and credit risk management. Steve previously worked in public accounting at Arthur Andersen and Ernst & Young. Steve earned his bachelor's degree in business administration and a master's degree in accounting from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Steve spends his free time with his wife and two daughters. He also likes to run, read, and is an avid sports fan.

Steve serves on the Board of Directors of Building Hope, an education nonprofit dedicated to expanding opportunities for students and families in underserved communities. 

Mark Heleen serves as executive vice president and chief legal officer at Navient, leading the company’s commitment to operate within the highest legal and regulatory standards.

Mark began his law career at a law firm that represented a bank, and in 1995, he became the senior counsel for Pittsburgh National Bank, the predecessor to today's PNC Financial.

Mark later joined Sallie Mae and eventually served as executive vice president and general counsel. Following his departure from Sallie Mae in 2010, Mark worked as a consultant for several start-up student lenders and investment banks. Mark then accepted a position with the law firm of Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP, where he continued to work with student loan legal topics.

Mark joined Navient in 2014 and was named general counsel in 2015.

A graduate of Bucknell University with a degree in political science and government, Mark continued his education at the University of Pittsburgh, where he earned his law degree. Mark grew up in New Bedford, Massachusetts, and enjoys spending time with his wife, Lisa, and their two kids.

John Kane serves as executive vice president and group president, business processing solutions. Our data driven business processing solutions enable our clients to focus on their missions and optimize their cash flow, and they enable individuals to successfully navigate complex programs, transactions, and decisions.

In 2008, John joined Sallie Mae to lead the asset recovery division, where he managed the development of a new loan modification program to assist student loan customers experiencing financial difficulties. In 2013, he oversaw a project to separate the company, creating Navient. Intense preparation led to a smooth transition, and in Navient's first year he served as chief operating officer.

John started his career as a customer assistance representative in a call center at MBNA, a credit card company that later became part of Bank of America.

A graduate from the University of Delaware with a degree in economics, John is an active New York sports fan who also enjoys spending time with friends and family, including his two children.

John serves on the board of the Freire Charter School Wilmington.

Mike Maier is senior vice president and chief information officer, bringing more than 20 years of experience in financial services. He joined the company in 2009 and has held various executive positions including leading loan servicing, asset recovery and cross functional bid teams. Mike translates his diverse leadership and financial services experience into actionable support for Navient’s customers. He stresses the value of making personal connections with customers to understand their expectations, create the right solution, and deliver to meet their needs.

Mike started his career in the financial services industry at MBNA. He led various analytic, operational, and strategic teams in the company’s consumer finance division, and later worked as an independent consultant advising various Fortune 100 companies.

A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Mike holds a degree in aerospace engineering and served for seven years in the U.S. Navy as a surface warfare officer. Mike frequently taps into his military experience while serving as the executive sponsor of the Navient Veteran Resource Group.

Mike is active in the community and has devoted his time to various organizations such as the Red Cross and Naval Academy Foundation. Mike is the proud parent of three active children and spends his nights and weekends cheering them on in their athletic pursuits.

Mike Smith is senior vice president and chief human resources officer, leading the company’s strategies to support our talented team. Over the past 15 years, he has led key components of the Navient human resources team, including employee compensation and benefits, HR analytics and systems, and the implementation of inclusion, diversity, and equity strategies.

Mike brings an extensive background and thought leadership in HR practices, with experience at several companies including Freddie Mac and Capital One and on several industry boards such as the client advisory board for Fidelity Investments.

He holds a Certified Compensation Professional (CCP) designation, a certification in data analytics from the University of Delaware, and a certification in inclusion and diversity leadership from Cornell University. Mike is a graduate of Virginia Tech with a bachelor’s degree in computer science and mathematics.

Mike is a board member of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Delaware and chairs the board’s HR committee.

Troy Standish serves as senior vice president of asset management and servicing operations. In this role, he oversees servicing and default prevention for Navient’s student loan customers. This includes responsibility for customer-facing activities carried out by dedicated employees in Navient’s servicing portfolio.

Troy joined the company in 2000, through the acquisition of Pioneer Credit Recovery. For the past more than 20 years, he has held various operational leadership roles throughout the company.

He is active in his volunteer work in and around the greater Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, area. He serves as a commissioner on the Pennsylvania Early Learning Investment Commission, a partnership of business leaders dedicated to making the success of every child in Pennsylvania a top priority. He has served as chair of the board of both the United Way of Wyoming Valley and the Greater Wyoming Valley Chamber of Commerce.

Troy resides in Wyoming Valley with his wife and three children. He enjoys spending time with his kids and is engaged with their sports and activities. Troy is also a fly fisherman.

Jennifer Walker serves as senior vice president and chief audit officer at Navient. She reports directly to the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors.

Jennifer joined Navient as vice president of internal audit where she provided oversight of audits and lead reviews of business operations, regulatory compliance, and information security and technology. Prior to her career at Navient, she held internal auditing roles at Protiviti, Freddie Mac and Sallie Mae.

Jennifer earned her bachelor's degree from the University of Virginia. After graduating, Jennifer was a software analyst for a healthcare consulting company before moving to the position of technology risk consulting manager at a Big Six accounting firm.

Outside of work, Jennifer enjoys staying active and spending time with her two sons.