Community leaders to speak at Women in Leadership Symposium

A two-day symposium to celebrate women leaders on campus and in the community and to prepare women to be leaders will be held during the evenings of Jan. 24-25 at Augustana College.

Speakers will include Augustana graduates Amy Calderone, WQAD-TV; Patricia Castro, state's attorney's office; Katy Hasson, Rockridge High School; and Linda Newborn, John Deere, in addition to Tamar Grimm, Tri-City Jewish Center; Amy Rowell, World Relief; and Berlinda Tyler-Jamison, Trinity Health. All events, except dinner, are free and open to the public. No reservations are needed for the workshops.

“We hope this symposium will provide positive role models for both male and female students and community members who will see that leaders in business, religion, education, law, the arts, athletics, communication and public service can have a woman’s face,” said Dr. Jane Simonsen, an associate professor of history and women’s & gender studies at Augustana. “At the same time, we want to help women and men prepare for some of the particular challenges that women may face on their way to becoming leaders, and to consider ways that institutions may revisit policies and practices that may make it more difficult for women to climb the ladder.”

Simonsen is coordinator of the Women’s & Gender Studies Program at Augustana. She and Kendra Mulcahy, a senior majoring in psychology and women’s & gender studies, are leading the event. The schedule is as follows:

Monday, Jan. 24

4:30-5:30 p.m.: Reception celebrating campus leaders, College Center Loft

5:30-6:30 p.m.: Dinner, College Center Loft

7-8 p.m.: Workshops, F.W. Olin Educational Technology Center

Tuesday, Jan. 25

4:30-5:30 p.m.: Roundtable with community leaders, Olin Center auditorium

7-8 p.m.: Workshops, Olin Center

“While the event is focused on women's leadership, we hope that men will consider coming as well, as both men and women will be negotiating workplaces where women increasingly are in positions of authority,” Simonsen added.  

The Women in Leadership Symposium is sponsored by Augustana’s Office of Student Activities, the Institute for Leadership and Service, and the departments of athletics, classics, communication studies, education, and women’s & gender studies.

For more details about the symposium, contact Scott Cason, assistant vice president for communication and marketing, at scottcason@augustana.edu or (309) 794-7323.