COLUMBIA COLLEGE WOMENAPRIL 2010

LEARNING CURVEWHAT I LEARNED FROM MY MENTOR...AND WHAT SHE LEARNED FROM ME

CCW GIVES BACKOUR NEW SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM IS KICKING OFF AND WE’RE WALKING IN THE EIF REVLON RUN/WALK FOR WOMEN--AND WE WANT YOU TO BE PART OF IT

WOMEN IN CHARGECHECK OUT CCW’S INVOLVEMENT IN THE COLUMBIA WOMEN’S BUSINESS SOCIETY LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

CCW WANTS YOUMEET OTHER CC ALUMS AND GIVE BACK TO COLUMBIA BY GETTING INVOLVED WITH CCW

Welcome to CCW’s powerhouse community of women who support and celebrate each others’ careers, leadership, volunteerism, and creativity!

This has been a definitive programming year for CCW, with the success of events such as our intelligent.style and women/wealth/wisdom- and more to come with June’s Eating Locally/Thinking Globally. This also marks an outstanding sixteenth year of CCW Mentoring. We saw a record level of involvement from students and alumnae, as well as a stylish Launch Cel-ebration, our vibrant *connect* networking event, the Spring Brunch, and team gatherings including museum visits, ice skating, and office tours.

We’re looking forward to staying connected with CC2010 women as you move on to life after college. Engaging with our community of accom-plished alumnae will be a great resource as you leave the campus world behind.

The CCW Community is built on a foundation of volunteerism – we’re wom-en who make things happen. Columbia College Women was founded in the 1990’s to build connections among the then-just-developing alumnae community of the college. Our Executive Board reflects a range of class years, professional interests, and backgrounds, and includes two student members.

We continue to expand our offerings through programs that include:• an event calendar with informative and fabulous gatherings, including a CCW team in May’s Revlon Run/Walk for Women’s Cancers, casual, fun Summer get-togethers, and September’s Food: Eating Locally, Thinking Globally.• the further development of the CCW Scholarship, the next dimension of our support of women’s legacies at the College.

You are at the core of our work—your ideas and involvement are critical to our ongoing success. Please consider joining a committee–drop me a note at cms98@columbia.edu to talk about how you can contribute. Spe-cial thanks to the CCW Mentoring Committee and the CCW Executive Board for their efforts and ongoing commitment.

We look forward to your continued involvement with CCW!

Best regards,

Claire Shanley, CC’ 92

Chair, Columbia College Women

As the 16th year of the CCW Mentoring Program comes to a close and another group of seniors graduate, I’ve found myself reflecting lately on what I’ve learned from the program this year.

This is my first year as Chair, and it’s been a humbling learning experi-ence from day one. The Committee’s overarching goal this year was to revitalize the mentoring program from the ground up, and we hope those of you who have been long-time mentors have seen the incredible steps we’ve taken this year! We created teams to provide different per-spectives within each industry for the students – and to provide men-tors with the opportunity to connect with and learn from each other. We trained team leaders, hoping to help mentors and mentees better stay in touch once the initial burst of excitement following the Launch wanes into the stress of studying for finals and planning for the holidays. I want to thank the team leaders, especially, for bringing their energy and enthusiasm to the program this year–you each made a phenomenal difference in the success of this program, and we couldn’t have done it without you! In addition, I had to learn how to match mentors and students, lead a committee, plan large-scale events, ask sponsors to donate to gift bags, write a newsletter, and keep tabs on all of you...in addition to my day-job as an attorney.

It’s also been in this role as Committee Chair that I’ve also taken on another role – that of a mentee myself. Claire Shanley, CCW’s Chair-woman, has become my informal mentor, life coach, and friend over the past year. She has provided an amazing example of how to be a Chair-woman, how to balance a busy job with serving as a volunteer, and how to be strong, smart, sophisticated woman. Claire has also always had my back, which has been more important than I can possibly express. Through every set-back, she has supported and encouraged me, and I truly would never have gotten through this first year without her. So I want to take this opportunity to say thank you, Claire, for being the best mentor a girl could ask for.

I want to thank all of this year’s mentors, too, for giving of yourselves to guide Columbia’s phenomenal students, who are about to take their first steps toward becoming the next generation of leaders in the business, science, the arts, law, government, medicine, journalism, and technol-ogy industries. And mentees, congratulations on your graduations! I hope you learned so much this year, and that those of you who will be staying in the city will join us as mentors next year!

Have a great summer, and I’ll see you next year!

Lindsay Rodman, CC’05Chair, CCW Mentoring Committee

Editors: Lindsay Rodman and Laura Torre

CCW Mentoring CommitteeBeth Malin, CC ‘11Katie Reedy, CC ‘09Lindsay Rodman, CC ‘05Mary Rutledge, CC ‘07Jacquie Seidel, CC ‘00Laura Torre, CC ‘11Noreen Whysel, CC ‘91 2

LETTERS FROM THE CHAIRS

You really never know what you will get out of being a mentor or mentee. The 2009-2010 year proved that to be true again! Some go into the program hoping to make a new friend, navigate their senior year, plan for post-graduation, or seek career guidance. But, sometimes you go in hoping for or expecting one thing and coming out with experiences and lessons beyond your expectations. Below are just a few selections of some of the mentors’ and mentees’ memories of the past year.

The Most Important Thing I Learned from my Mentee is...

Cake – preferably homemade – is the cure for whatever ails you.

To let loose, because it’s those silly moments that make a differ-ence, and that you will always remember.

To let my mentee make her own decisions...though I can try to make them as informed decisions as possible!

To never be afraid to take a chance - it will all work out in the end.

To appreciate the time you have to stop a moment and appreciate the present.

That current students seriously appreciate contact with alums – es-pecially sustained contact like the Mentoring Program. It makes the world outside the gates seem much less scary.

To remember to take time to have fun!

The Very Best AdviceMary Rutledge (CC ‘07)

MENTORING PROGRAM

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The Most Important Thing I Learned from my Mentor is...

You never know who can help you get somewhere, so always be open!

It cannot be summed up in a single statement. My mentor is a fabulous professional mentor as well as a genuine personal friend. She gives me solid and honest advice about relationships and life. She is also always there to listen and impart her wisdom when I come to her with career-related questions. Just being in her presence always teaches me so much--she’s like a big sister to me, and for that, I am so grateful.

Networking, networking, networking!

Company culture can be best defined and measured by how much your bosses and peers support you, trust you with responsibilities, and want to see you succeed.

Streeteasy.com! So helpful for apartment searching!

That it pays to be nice to anyone and everyone that you come into con-tact with from the janitor to the CEO, because you never know when you may need their help in the future.

To take time out of your busy day to talk to have good conversations with other people.

To appreciate my time at Columbia - sadly, soon enough it will be coming to an end. And, you never know when you’re going to be at a network-ing event and a weirdo at the bar will start talking about Aristotle and you’ll be so grateful for the Core Curriculum!

Siiheun Song (CC ’03) mentors Beth Malin (CC ‘11)

The Columbia Women’s Business Society (CWBS) is an under-graduate women’s organization that aims to create a business leadership network between Columbia students and female professionals in New York City and beyond. I became involved with CWBS my first semester at Columbia. While I hoped that in-terview would just ensure the upperclassmen would remember me for the following year’s elections, I was thrilled when I was the first freshman ever elected to the board just weeks after my arrival at Columbia. In April 2009, I was elected President going into my third year on the board. As my year as President just came to a close, bittersweet feelings came over me as I handed down my title. While I’m so excited to see what the new President will accomplish with the club (and excited to have a little more free time), as I walked out of the election room, I was truly sad to see my countless nights of staying up until the early morning writing CWBS emails come to a end.

CWBS hosts a variety of events each year, the biggest of which is the annual Women’s Leadership conference. This year marked the Sixth Annual Columbia Women’s Business Society Leadership Conference, entitled Inspiring Women Inspiring Change. This title was meant to encourage discussion of seizing opportunity, change and innovation during and after the economic downturn. This year’s conference was held on Saturday, February 27th in Low Library, and featured keynote speakers, Kim Martin, President and General Manager of WE TV and Wedding Central; Marianna Olszewski, a money expert, life coach and author; and Vicki Salemi, an entrepreneur, author and career con-sultant.

Four panels—finance, consulting, entrepreneurship and marketing —were held at the conferece. One of the most important improve-ments made in the past few years has been the inclusion of more Columbia alumni in the conference. This year, each of the panel moderators was a Columbia alumna. As a Student board member of Columbia College Women, it was my goal to see CWBS and CCW women come together at the conference. CWBS was lucky to have three CCW women as panelists—Kim Fisher moderated the Marketing Panel, Si-huen Song moderated the Consulting Panel, and Sarah Decker sat on the Consulting Panel. It was extremely inspiring for students to have women on the panels who are so dedicated to staying connected to

their alma mater, fellow graduates and current students.

Not only were CCW women on the panels, but CCW board members, Claire Shanley, Lindsay Rodman, and Laura Torre came to host a table at the dessert networking reception. This was a great opportunity for both CCW and conference attendees, as CCW was able to reach an on-campus audi-ence of extremely successful and driven young women, and attendees had the opportunity to learn about CCW and ways they can stay connected to Columbia College after gradua-tion. Not only did many students have long chats with the CCW women, but after the conference many students con-tacted me about how to get more involved with CCW and how to make sure they remained connected to the organization. With such a great response from current students, it’s clear that CCW has found a successful way to reach out to students and get them excited about becoming CCW members after graduation!

Columbia Women’s Business SocietyArticle and photos: Beth Malin (CC’11)

EVENTS

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The 2009-10 CWBS executive board

From left: Laura Torre (CC ‘11), Lindsay Rodman (CC ‘05), and Claire Shanley (CC ‘92) host the CCW table at the CWBS Leadership Conference

For those of you who will be hanging around in NYC next year, the Spring Brunch doesn’t have to mean the end of your connection with CCW. There are tons of ways you can stay involved with CCW! Read on to find out how...

Be a mentor! • For this year’s mentors, we want nothing more than to have you back. The success of the Mentoring Program depends on you most of all, and we’re proud to have so many mentors that come back year after year. If you’d like to take on an even more involved role in the program, consider becoming a Team Leader! If you want to find out more about being a Team Leader, email Lindsay Rodman at lindsay.blair.rodman@gmail.com.• For mentees, we hope you’ll consider joining the program as a mentor next year! You may not be well-established in your careers – yet – but that doesn’t mean you have nothing to of-fer. Did you apply to graduate school, go on a job hunt, send out resumes, or go to an interview? Did you navigate the NYC real-estate market to find a place to live after graduation? Are you exploring ways to meet new people, or figuring out how to balance a new job with a fab new social life? Then you are more than quali-fied to be a mentor!

Come to CCW Events!• Did you love meeting other Columbia students and alumnae at the Launch Party, *connect*, and the Spring Brunch? Do you like fashion shows, wine tastings, tips on managing your money, finding out more about the locavore food trend, or grabbing after work cocktails? Then you belong at CCW events! We sponsor year-

round programming for smart, sophisticated and savvy CC alums. Make sure you’re on the CCW email list by emailing Jennifer Freely at jf2261@columbia.edu.

Serve on a CCW Committee!• Has your experience with the Mentoring Program this year has given you great ideas you think other mentors and mentees would love? Do you have killer ideas for parties, panels, and presenta-tions for other CC alumnae? Are you passionate about giving back and helping the next generation of female leaders at Columbia? Then CCW wants YOU! One of the best ways to get involved in

CCW is by serving on a committee. We have commit-tees on Mentoring, Events, the CCW Scholarship, and Membership Devel-opment. For more information and to get involved, email Claire Shanley at claires@igc.org.

Be on the CCW Signature Event Host Committee!• CCW is proud to announce our First Annual Signature Event, which will take place next

year. Our signature shindig will be a celebration of CC alumnae accomplishments, and of course will benefit a great cause – the CCW Scholarship! To make this sure-to-be-fabulous event a night no one will forget, we need a few good women to help us host. For more information, email Claire Shanley at cms98@columbia.edu.

CCW Wants You! GETTING INVOLVED

Lindsay Rodman (CC’05), Photo by Rebeca Castillo

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From Left: Elizabeth Robilotti (CC ‘99), Kim Fisher (CC ‘00), and Dominique Sasson (CC ‘99) at a CCW event.

Columbia College Women was founded in 1989 to build connections among the then-developing alumnae community of the College as well as to forge and maintain strong bonds between those alumnae and female students. This year, as the CCW community now numbers close to ten thousand women, we are very proud to announce the creation of the CCW Scholarship.

With CCW’s commitment to building networks and support for current students, the Scholarship is the next dimension in our support of women’s legacies at the college. By providing support for high-achieving female students with demonstrated financial need, we are reinforcing the community that we build through volunteer work such as the CCW Mentoring Program.

To further our fund-raising efforts, the Scholarship Committee (consisting of Claire Shanley, Shelly Eversley, Angela Ellis, Siheun Song and Jacquie Seidel) hosted an intimate Founders’ Circle wine-tasting event in February. The wine tasting was held at Little Italy’s Florio’s on Grand Street. While the always-entertaining owner, Frank Linsalata, took us through five wines ranging from chardonnay to rosé to cabernet sauvignon, the Schol-arship Committee raised enthusiasm, awareness, and funds for the scholarship. There was an impressive showing of donors, who mingled with one another, learned more about CCW’s scholarship goals, and were able to make a pledge on-site.

To date, we are well along in funding a current-use scholarship, but we’re not quite there yet. If you’re able to make a contribution to get us across the finish line, we would be very grateful for your support! Every dollar counts, especially as we approach the end of the fund-raising year on June 30th.

The Scholarship Committee will be hosting more great events in the upcoming year, and there are many ways to show your support for this im-portant project. Please consider volunteering your help on an upcoming event, or joining the CCW Scholarship Committee. If you’d like to make a tax-deductible donation or learn more about the Scholarship Committee, please contact Jacquie Seidel CC’00 at jks33@columbia.edu.

Jacquie Seidel (CC ‘00), Photo by Rebeca Castillo

CCW GIVES BACK

CCW Scholarship

For the second year in a row, Columbia College Women is fielding a team in the EIF Revlon Run/Walk for Women! As participants in this year’s CCW Mentoring Program, we’d like to officially invite all men-tors and students to join us in supporting this fabulous cause.

If you will be in NYC on the morning of Saturday, May 1st, then what are you waiting for? You can still register to join us! We will have CCW members running and walking, so you’ll be surrounded by our

fearless fun femmes whatever you choose! Friends (and men!) are very welcome, too.

Even if you can’t join us on May 1st, you can make a donation to help Team CCW fight cancer! Any amount helps, and you are supporting a truly fabulous and worthwhile cause. As if that isn’t enough, all donations are 100% tax deductible!

Visit www.revlonrunwalk.com to sign up with or donate to our team #4062!

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Shelly Eversle (CC ‘91) talking to guests about the CCW scholarship.

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