Happy New Year! I hope this note finds you engaged in interesting and rewarding life challenges.
The EJS Women’s Leadership Program completed another dynamic fall semester. We started off with two days of orientation designed to foster group cohesion, build trust, increase motivation and develop communication and networking skills. An impressive group of women spoke at the fall symposia events - Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Former Lt. Governor of Maryland, Attorney and Niece of John F. Kennedy, Tara Sonenshine, Former Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy, and Vinca LaFleur, West Wing Writer and speechwriter for Former President Clinton, to name a few. We also attended the Kennedy Center’s theatrical production Freeze Frame…Stop the Madness by Debbie Allen, a lively and very contemporary multi-media show.
This spring we will host CNN reporter, Athena Jones; sponsor a “Women in Policy” panel that includes government and NGO leaders in politics, health, and coalition building; hear from Mary Ellsberg, director of GW’s Global Women’s Institute, and Iranian journalist Yeganeh Rezian; and attend Arena Stage’s new production of Lorraine Hansberry’s iconic play A Raisin In The Sun. If you plan to be in town at any point this spring and would like to attend a symposium event we would be delighted to have you join us. Please let us know and we can send further details.
The mentor/mentee program, initiated under Mount Vernon National Advisory Council support and now directed by Kimberly Humphries and Amy Matthews, has been a great resource for the WLP students. We attended a Winter Party to celebrate the close of the fall semester and heard from a number of successful partner participants. We will invite the current WLP students into the program at the upcoming spring Elizabeth J Somers Founder’s Day event. If you would like to participate, please send an email and share a short summary of your career path. We are happy to welcome new mentors.
Best Wishes,
Professor Mary Buckley, Director of EJS Women’s Leadership Program