Cynthia Louise Germanotta (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Bissett; born August 30, 1954) is an American philanthropist, activist and entrepreneur. She is the president of the Born This Way Foundation, which she co-founded with her daughter, singer Lady Gaga, in 2012.

Early life, education, and career

Germanotta was born Cynthia Louise Bissett on August 30, 1954, in Wheeling, West Virginia, where she was also raised. Her parents were Paul Douglas Bissett (April 7, 1926 – March 31, 2013), a State Farm insurance agent who sang with the McMechen Men's Chorus and the McMechen Methodist Choir, and Veronica Rose Ferrie (February 2, 1928 - December 12, 2022). She is of Italian descent through her mother and Scottish, English and German descent through her father. She has an older brother, Paul, and a younger sister, Cheryl Ann. Germanotta graduated from John Marshall High School in Glen Dale, West Virginia. She then attended West Virginia University and earned a master's degree in public administration from George Washington University. While at West Virginia University, Germanotta was a cheerleader and a member of Chi Omega. Germanotta worked for Verizon as a telecommunications executive in sales and management.

Philanthropy and activism

In 2012, Germanotta and her daughter, Lady Gaga, co-founded the Born This Way Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on inspiring youth, ending bullying, and building up communities. Germanotta was honored by Boston PFLAG and by Dancing Classrooms for her advocacy regarding youth mental health. Germanotta is an advocate for the Women's Council on Heart Health for the Ronald O. Perelman Heart Institute and serves on the board of the Empowerment Initiative at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She also served on the Ladies Auxiliary Committee of The Columbus Citizens Foundation, for which she received the Humanitarian Award in 2015. As of 2016, she serves as a member of the Board of Governors for the Parsons School of Design. On June 10, 2018, Germanotta addressed the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; , AGNU or AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as its main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ. Currently in its Seventy-ninth session of th ...

on behalf of the Born This Way Foundation and launched the United for Global Mental Health initiative. On May 20, 2019, the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

' World Health Organization announced that Germanotta would be one of four new Goodwill Ambassadors, as the ambassador for mental health.

Personal life

Germanotta is married to Joseph Germanotta, an internet entrepreneur and restaurateur. The couple have two daughters, Stefani (Lady Gaga) (born 1986) and Natali (born 1992). Germanotta is

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and is a parishioner at the Church of the Blessed Sacrament in New York City. In 2017, she appeared in the documentary '' Gaga: Five Foot Two''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Germanotta, Cynthia 1954 births Living people 20th-century Roman Catholics 21st-century Roman Catholics Activists from West Virginia American nonprofit chief executives American people of English descent American people of French descent American people of French-Canadian descent American people of German descent American people of Italian descent American people of Scottish descent American Roman Catholics American women nonprofit executives American women philanthropists Catholics from West Virginia Founders of charities Germanotta family Mental health activists Organization founders People from Wheeling, West Virginia Philanthropists from West Virginia Roman Catholic activists Trachtenberg School of Public Policy & Public Administration alumni Verizon people West Virginia University alumni American women founders