Dara Goldberg, a proud Temple University alumna, has never been one to follow the script. Her path—from studying social welfare policy at Temple to spending almost 20 years in nonprofit consulting to most recently, at age 56, founding the Endless Beauty Collective—is a powerful reminder that midlife is not a crisis, but a transformation.

After earning her MSW at Temple's School of Social Administration (now the School of Social Work), Goldberg initially envisioned a career in clinical social work. But what unfolded instead was a passion for systems-level change. Professors like Happy Fernandez and Bill Perry encouraged Goldbergto shape her education around her interests, empowering her to seek out ways to improve the lives of children, youth and families through nonprofit consulting.

It was this foundation that led Goldberg to become one of the founding partners of Fairmount Ventures, a nonprofit consulting firm that allowed her to work on designing programmatic initiatives and securing funding for organizations across the Philadelphia region. Her Temple experience gave her both the self-confidence and the intellectual tools to take that leap.

Years later, at midlife, Goldberg felt an unexpected but deeply empowering transformation. As her sense of confidence and clarity grew, she began to see a troubling gap between how she felt about her inner and outer beauty and what society, and the beauty industry were telling her—that aging is something to hide or fight.

So, she created the Endless Beauty Collective, a movement focused on redefining aging as a time of growth and pride, not decline, and getting the beauty industry in particular to stop selling women on the idea that their beauty has an expiration date. Through Instagram-based communities, collaborations with other pro-age advocates, and consulting to women-owned beauty brands, Goldberg’s work champions a pro-age ethos that pushes back on the industry's outdated narratives.

"It came at me all at once," she says. "It was one of those things you can't not do."

Her mission is clear: help women embrace their evolving selves, and support brands that do the same. She’s also built a publicly available guide with pro-age beauty brands, encouraging consumers to shift their dollars toward companies that celebrate women at every stage.

Now reengaged with Temple, Goldberg is finding new ways to give back—whether it’s through alumni events or initiatives like Public Health Beyond Borders.

"We were all Temple family," she says. "I didn't realize how deeply Temple had impacted my life until I reconnected."

Goldberg’s experience is a powerful example of what it means to evolve, empower, and inspire. Her career is proof that growth doesn’t stop in your twenties—and that the best chapters are often still ahead.

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