She received her bachelor of arts with honors from Vassar College and earned her juris doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law.
From 1981 to 1988, Larson oversaw business and regulatory issues for the Federal Trade Commission as an attorney advisor to FTC Commissioner Patricia Bailey.
[7] As deputy director, Larson's work included establishing national consumer protection policies and implementing law enforcement and educational efforts.
[10] Through Patrick's two terms, Larson advised the administration in a variety of business-related roles, including leading the Governor's Council of Economic Advisors.
[14] She is an advocate for education and job creation, and co-chaired the board of the non-partisan think tank MassINC;[2] co-chair of the Great Schools Campaign, a school reform partnership managed by the Mass Insight Education and Research Institute;[15] and served a role in Global Massachusetts 2015, a multi-year leadership initiative to create a vision for economic success in key and emerging industry sectors over the next decade.
She was also chosen by Mayor Thomas Menino in 2004 to serve on the Boston Host Committee for the Democratic National Convention, and was appointed by Governor-Elect Mitt Romney in November 2002 to chair his Transportation and Housing Transition Team.
[18] She also previously served as a director on the boards of KeySpan Energy and RSA Security before the companies were acquired by National Grid and EMC, respectively.
[19] In addition, she is a board or advisory council member of several prominent professional, charitable and civic organizations including Roger Williams University School of Law, the Massachusetts High Technology Council, University of Massachusetts Center for Collaborative Leadership and Rosie's Place.
One of its most recent innovations, the Bentley MBA, is an 11-month global program where students pursue four 10-week modules in a collaborative, studio-based setting.