Building community was a central theme of the inaugural Women in Community-Engaged Leadership Symposium, held June 20 in New York City. Open to any Cornell alumni and students interested in the role of gender in public service careers, the event drew 40 students from across the university.

"When I was a student at Cornell, we had minimal opportunities to meet with Cornell alumni working in the public and social impact sectors,” said Vicki Johnson ’01, founder of ProFellow. “This event was a space for students to make connections to some of the many women leaders from the Cornell community who are making an impact and receive their insights and advice.”

Johnson first planted the seed for the meeting, which she co-organized with Amy Somchanhmavong, MILR’ 02, associate director of Global Community-Engaged Learning Programs at the Einhorn Center for Community Engagement. Funded by a grant from the President's Council of Cornell Women (PCCW), the event took place at the offices of Deloitte. 

In a series of conversations, presentations and workshops, participants networked with early-, mid- and late-career Cornellians who are leaders in government, nonprofits, philanthropy, public interest law, advocacy, volunteerism, social entrepreneurship, academia and elected office.

“The data show that people who identify as women tend to be more involved in community service, but we don’t see them as much in formal leadership roles,” Somchanhmavong said. At the symposium, organizers aimed to equip participants – particularly those at the start of their careers – with practical skills and connections to change this dynamic.

A workshop on personal pitch with Ashley Zwick, who facilitates courses in Cornell’s Women in Leadership Certificate program, helped set the tone for the rest of the day.

“I really enjoyed practicing my elevator pitch, because it was a great opportunity to connect to those around us and find people with similar aspirations and goals,” said Alessia Stead ’25, a student in the College of Human Ecology. Formal and informal networking opportunities throughout the day allowed attendees to further deepen these connections.

During armchair conversations in the morning and afternoon, groups of emerging and more established leaders shared stories of their journeys from Cornell to their current positions.

“The speakers were wonderful,” said Daniella Oana ’99, who serves as director of strategic transformation and growth in the Global Consulting business unit at Deloitte. “I thought there was a lot of authenticity and trust in the anecdotes that people could connect to.”

For Madison Stead ’25, another College of Human Ecology student, hearing about the unusual trajectories many alumnae have followed struck a chord. “My path is always pretty unconventional, so it was refreshing and reassuring to hear that they arrived where they are now, even though their path wasn't exactly linear or planned meticulously in advance,” she explained.

Keynote speaker Valisha Graves ’85, for one, came to Cornell wanting to become a criminal lawyer. But after graduating with a degree in government and international relations, she earned an MBA from Columbia Business School and has been a senior fintech product manager, most recently at JP Morgan Chase and Morgan Stanley. 

She also remains heavily involved with her alma mater. Joining the PCCW – of which she is the past chair – was especially impactful. “For the first time I got to meet a critical mass of dynamic Cornell women who helped me think outside the box,” she said. Graves is a Cornell Trustee as well as a member of numerous other education-related organizations.

At the end of the day, participants were asked to describe the impact of the event in one word. The most frequent responses: “inspired”, “hopeful” and “motivated.”

“We all need inspiration, connections, and support to get us through the challenges on the daily basis, especially in today’s context.” Somchanhmavong said. “And I think that the symposium was able to provide.”