Global Symposium in Brazil

On Monday, March 18th, Barnard hosted the Fifth Annual Global Symposium in Sao Paulo, Brazil.  This program promoted the extraordinary work of some of Brazil’s most successful women leaders from a host of fields:  business, government, science, and the arts.  Kathryn Kolbert, the Constance Hess Williams ’66 director of the Athena Center, joined Barnard President Debora Spar and other faculty for the Symposia and moderated one of the day’s panels.  Six Barnard students, most of whom are Athena Scholars,  traveled to Sao Paulo to conduct leadership workshops with approximately 60 high school students.

Athena hosts Women Leaders from Egypt

On Saturday, March 23rd, The Athena Center hosted 19 women leaders from Egypt. The daylong training was part of the Women's Initiative Fellowship of the George W. Bush Institute, a three-week fellowship designed to empower and equip women to catalyze change. We shared strategies for engaging men as allies, the tools and tactics of resilient entrepreneurs and introduced the Athena CORE10. We'd like to thank the nine women leaders from the Girl Scouts of Greater New York, SMPLCT Lab, Women & Hollywood, FutureWork Institute, and others who joined the Egyptian Women Leaders for lunch and to share best practices.

Congratulations to the new 2013 Athena Summer Fellows

Every year, the Athena Center selects ten Barnard juniors from a diverse and competitive applicant pool, to join the Summer Fellowship Program. Students are awarded a $4,000 stipend to work at an internship of their choice. All summer fellows  live together for 10 weeks on Barnard's campus and meet regularly to reflect on their summer internship and participate in educational and social events with Athena Center staff and other leaders.

Congratulations 2013 Athena Summer Fellows: Dare Brawley, Emily Cass, Megan Dinnerstein, Kacie Dragon, Aliza Hassine, Amille Inge, Margaret Meder, Eliza Rosen, Anna Schuler, and Nadine Mansour.

Athena Summer Programs at Barnard

Barnard's Office of Pre-College Programs and the Athena Center for Leadership Studies are launching a 10-day summer program focused on providing young women a transformative immersion into the world of entrepreneurship. Participants will be guided through the process of creating an idea for a socially responsible business.  Talented high school girls will work in small teams to develop their ventures through guided, experiential workshops.  They will gain critical problem-solving skills as marketers, storytellers, public speakers and first-time entrepreneurs.

At "Entrepreneurs in Training", girls will be coached by some of the most accomplished and well known entrepreneurs in the industry as well as educators passionate about developing women leaders and promoting women-led start-ups! Instructors range from a former executive at one of the world’s top Ad Agencies, a CEO named a "Forbes Top Ten Female Entrepreneurs to Watch", an angel investing expert, and an instructor of strategic problem solving from Columbia Business School to the cofounder of Lean Startup Machine.

Athena Center Events

Athena Power Talk and Leadership Lab with Ina Drew

On April 10th, Ina Drew, retired Chief Investment Officer, JPMorgan Chase, joined Barnard President Debora Spar for conversation about her life and career for the Athena Center's second power talk this spring.

Ina and Debora had a detailed conversation about current economic conditions, Ina's career path and her advice for students interested in a career in finance.

Ina also hosted a special Leadership Lab with Barnard students, titled It's All Manageable: Conquering Challenges and Turning Them Into Successes, on Wednesday, April 24th. During the lab, Ina posited that career success requires just the right blend of ambition, skill, and preparation for both the foreseeable and the unpredictable and encouraged students to start preparing today for conquering any challenges that may arise. They explored the daunting question that almost every Barnard student will one day ask: how to continue to stay one step ahead as they transition from college to a professional environment.