Priscilla Alexander ’58 founded Protravel International in 1984 and quickly built it into a travel-agency juggernaut and sold in 2014. With roughly $900 million in annual sales, Protravel grew to become one of the largest national agencies 22 offices around the US and England with over 800 employees.

Protravel was the first Premium Member of the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) as well as a member of ASTA’s Corporate Advisory Council. Over the years, Alexander has served on nearly every advisory board established for the retail travel industry and is recognized year after year by Travel + Leisure magazine in its A-List issue.

Alexander studied art at Bennington College, and fell in love with travel while studying at the Sorbonne in Paris. After returning to New York, earning a master’s degree at Columbia University and working in education, real estate, and other fields, Alexander switched gears and became a travel agent.

 In 2008, Alexander was listed among Forbes “25 Most Influential Women in Travel.” She received a Travel Weekly Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009 and the Virtuoso Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014. In addition to being a member of the Bennington College Board of Trustees, she serves on the Board of Directors at the LaGuardia Community College Foundation. She is also an Editor at large at Luxury Travel Advisor and is the travel advisor for the magazine Afar.