ATHENA CENTER FOR LEADERSHIP
ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021
TABLE OF CONTENTS A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR
3
MISSION
5
2020-2021 YEAR IN REVIEW
7
THIRDSPACE@
8
CHANGEMAKER COMMUNITIES
12
FINANCIAL WELL-BEING
18
SCHOLARS PROGRAM
19
ATHENA FILM FESTIVAL
22
OUR TEAM
28
OUR THANKS
32
A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR Dear friends, This past year has been one of the hardest that we’ve faced as individuals, as students, as teachers, as a college community, and as, well, humans. Our students, staff, and supporters found themselves juggling anxiety, grief, and caregiving alongside living through a global pandemic, a contentious election, a long overdue reckoning with a legacy of racial injustice, and the manifestation of very real impacts of climate change. So, yes, it's been a lot. And yet, everywhere, people came together to tackle these challenges. The mass mobilization of people all over the world in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and the largest voter turnout in American history were underpinned by everyday acts of leadership and creativity — from grandmothers turning out homemade masks, to students delivering lunches to frontline workers and tutoring the children of working parents, to mutual aid groups in neighborhoods everywhere. These examples of collective action validate our view that great leaders are great problem-solvers — and truly collaborative problem-solvers. After all, this year has done nothing if not demonstrate how the most complex, intractable challenges must be things we tackle together — and that tackling them together can produce not just impact, but real connection and joy. Here at Athena, Barnard students experience this magic year-round. With the help of the resources of the incredible Barnard community and our unparalleled network of supporters — you! — we are where Barnard students come to put their individual talents together to build a better future. Through our academic year and summer programs, students develop the tools they need to succeed at collaboration, meet and connect with like-minded peers and mentors, and embrace the mindset that will enable them to lead and navigate the ambiguity as well as the possibility of the future. We are where students ask themselves “What can I do, where I am?” — and answer it.
In the following pages, you will find examples of how we did this in 2020-2021 — like ThirdSpace@, a program designed for this particular moment in time, thanks to the unique opportunities going remote afforded us. I am also incredibly proud of our election series which provided a forum for students to watch debates together, hear thoughtful commentary from a curated group of speakers, and share thoughts and feelings not just about candidates but about the political process. And, I’m thrilled to have launched our Startup Summit, with Barnard’s alum entrepreneur network BEnet, to run Barnard founders (students and alums alike) through a bootcamp that helped them turn their ideas into viable businesses. I am grateful to all of our friends, supporters, and advisors who were so generous with their time and talents and helped us get these programs off the ground. I’m grateful too to Athena’s dedicated staff, and our friends across the Barnard and Columbia campuses who brought these events to life — in the spirit of collaboration, we have more campus partners than ever before, helping us to reach more students than ever before, together. And of course, my greatest thanks go to the Barnard students who faced the challenges of this past year with grace and grit. I can’t wait to be back on campus with all of you! Sincerely,
Umbreen Bhatti Constance Hess Williams '66 Director September 2021
The world is full of vexing challenges. A warming planet, hunger, mis- and disinformation, all of the -isms that keep people from reaching their full potential, just to name a few. These challenges require creative solutions, but it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. What can we do? Where do we even start? At the Athena Center for Leadership, we see leaders as, at their core, problemsolvers — and our role as providing Barnard students with a wide range of ways to practice solving problems at all scales, all experience-based and available to students from day one. Athena is home to Barnard students who see opportunities in challenges and seize them to build a better world, together — because these are the leaders we need now.
OUR MISSION To equip Barnard students with the skills and experiences they need to take on our world’s many complex challenges.
OUR APPROACH CREATIVE We are home to artists, activists, entrepreneurs, our future policymakers and more; we value all ways to create new possibilities and build a better world. And we acknowledge and honor the work that was done before we arrived and upon which we build.
COLLABORATIVE The change we need won’t come from a single approach or a single person. We create space for the messy work of collaborating across disciplines and lived experiences, across hierarchies and locations. We don’t pretend that it’s easy, but we do believe it’s worth it.
CONSCIOUS OF IMPACT We move at the speed of trust. As we tackle complex challenges, we ask: Who might be helped by our ideas and who might be harmed by them, and what can we do to prevent harm? We’re mindful of the impact of this work on ourselves as well. After all, the path to meaningful, lasting change is a winding one. Missteps and setbacks are inevitable and more than okay here!
OUR PROGRAMS CO-CURRICULAR At Athena, we learn by doing, building on our experiences in the classroom with Barnard’s world-class faculty. We offer experiences on and off campus that give students the chance to put problemsolving skills into practice; low-stress, low-commitment, high-value workshops that teach new skills and refine existing ones; and the support of a community of mentors and experts who are generous with their knowledge and networks.
2020-2021 : : YEAR IN REVIEW 88
students — from all class years — tackled challenges in their communities in ThirdSpace@, a virtual co-curricular program designed to help them meet the moment we found ourselves in. Inspired by 10 visionaries making change in 3 interconnected areas, students pursued changemaking projects in 4 countries & 20+ states.
12,000
film-lovers attended our first ever, month-long virtual Athena Film Festival, viewing 19 panels and conversations and a record-breaking 79 films, in 8 program areas dedicated to responding to the past year, including Dismantling White Supremacy and Women in STEM.
800
students and alumnae joined 9 experts — journalists, government staffers and former public officials, authors, and activists — across 8 events in our popular election series featuring debate watches, debriefings, and post-election chats.
26
young women from 9 countries including the United States joined our first ever spring leadership program for high school students, a 4-week virtual learning opportunity aimed at equipping them with the tools to be the creative, collaborative leaders we need now.
ThirdSpace@
A UNIQUE PROGRAM FOR A UNIQUE YEAR Think back to last summer: the beginning of a pandemic, an overnight shift to remote learning, an international movement for Black lives, all in the span of a few months... whew. To help students make sense of it all, and to then take meaningful action in response to the myriad crises we were facing, we launched ThirdSpace@, a virtual, co-curricular program for 2020-2021, for students to do what they could, with what they had, wherever they were — which was in 20+ states and 4 countries (hence the @!). Designed in partnership with the Center for Engaged Pedagogy and the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, ThirdSpace@ offered inspiration via SPARK and the community and connection students needed to sustain their actions via BUILD.
SPARK A series of conversations between members of the Barnard community and visionaries tackling the interconnected challenges of economic insecurity, access to education, and community safety. ! 77% open rate on our SPARK newsletter, which shared the videos along with additional recommendations.
! 92% of students reported that SPARKs pushed them to read more about a topic and 76% reported that a SPARK pushed them to make changes to their projects — exactly what we were going for. All of our SPARK videos are available to view at https://barnard.edu/spark. Check them out!
SELECTED SPARKS Community Safety Cynthia Conti-Cook, J.D., interviewed as civil rights litigator, and Tech Fellow at the Ford Foundation, by Fatima Koli ‘17, Associate Director of the Empirical Reasoning Center at Barnard College. Educational Equity Taylor Morton, M.S., M.S., interviewed as Environmental Health and Education Manager at WE ACT for Environmental Justice in Harlem, by Emily Ndiokho '22. Economic Security Mia Birdsong, interviewed as author and activist based in Oakland, California, interviewed about her exploration of the concept of Universal Basic Income through conversations with people experiencing poverty, by Phanésia Pharel '21.
BUILD A year-long opportunity for students to work on challenges in their own communities, with their peers as thought partners and expert facilitators as their guides, in their monthly BUILD Circles. ! Nearly half of BUILD students were first years. In evaluations, the sense of connection to Barnard was ranked especially high among BUILD students who were spending their first year at Barnard online (i.e., first year and transfer students).
My Build action was a continuation of racial advocacy I started last summer. As [an alumna in my high school school district], I struggled to find my place in spaces constructed for current students’ voices to shine. I learned to actively listen and how to support the community I cared about from afar. I can still be involved with educational equity without having myself centered in the activism taking place. M.S. '24
Participant responses about what they learned coalesced around four main themes: increased self-awareness (including personal development, e.g.: relationship to change, empathy of self, commitment/resilience); improved ability to relate to others and/or to community (e.g. listening, collaboration in pursuit of a large goal, communication, outreach, working within different types of power structures, being inspired by others, serving outside of one’s home community); better project management skills (e.g. setting manageable goals, creating and executing timelines, brining structure to ideas); and deepened understanding of social change (e.g. understanding one's role in the social change ecosystem among other roles, skills in organizing and advocacy, learning about a specific social justice issue, redefining one's perspective on activism).
Throughout BUILD, I learned to continue showing up for what I believed in and a deeper understanding of how difficult it can be to make real change. I learned that even if you believe in something, it doesn’t mean that everyone will always be on the same page as you, and in order to get what you want, you need to fight...Creating change takes time, and it can be frustrating when it feels like nothing is getting done. But sometimes going slower with more intention can help create an even more incredible outcome. Patience > ego. I. L. '24
I.L '24 is passionate about empowering women to pursue computer science - that's the primary reason she chose Barnard, in fact. She entered Barnard eager to apply this passion to learning design and dedicated her time in BUILD to seeing how she could do that in the computer science department here, She came in with big plans (like all Barnard students!). BUILD helped her figure out where to start and how to work effectively with others who shared her goals - and helped her see how starting small could lead to success.
AMANDA MUNROE, MA Project Manager, ThirdSpace@ Amanda Munroe is a facilitator and consultant who works with educational and faith-based institutions to develop community-based social justice partnerships and transformational learning programs. She previously directed mission integration and community-based learning at Georgetown University’s Center for Social Justice, and coordinated online learning for the United States Institute of Peace. Amanda recently moved to New York City to begin a Master of Divinity at Union Theological Seminary, right next door to Barnard. She holds an MA in Conflict Resolution with a focus on Peace Pedagogy from Georgetown University and a BA in Global Studies & French from North Park University in Chicago, Illinois.
CHANGEMAKER COMMUNITIES POLICY | ADVOCACY | ENTREPRENEURSHIP | TECH
COMMUNITY
COLLABORATION
CHANGE
The most satisfying, most powerful collaborations come from a place of deep trust. That's why we're so focused on fostering communities here at Athena — not just one, but multiple, so that any student who walks through our doors can find their place and their people. This year, we supported 4 changemaker communities, each centered around a different method of making change but all sharing a common goal: to give Barnard students a space to develop their skills, learn from their peers and our amazing network, and explore what effective action can look like.
CHANGEMAKING : : POLICY Through the Williams Program for Women in Politics, Barnard students explore government as an avenue and policy as a tool for tackling our most difficult challenges. ELECTIONS 2020
Our 2020 Election series kicked off in the fall with a presidential debate watch with over 100 attendees. Moderators were Jessica Huseman, lead reporter for ProPublica's Electionland project and Naureen Akhter '09, Deputy District Director at U.S. House of Representatives. Akhter noted that the event’s paradigm-shifting conversations on American politics were vital for students and the guests themselves. “The 2016 election showed us that it’s not necessarily left versus right; we need to be talking about top versus bottom and what policies appeal to ordinary people,” Akhter said. “I [enjoyed sharing] with students ways to stay engaged beyond presidential elections, such as laying the groundwork in our own communities to build a strong pipeline of leaders.” Other events included a vice presidential debate watch, moderating that event was Julianna Goldman '03, an award-winning multimedia journalist, with a 15+ year career as a CBS News Correspondent and as a White House Correspondent for Bloomberg News and Bloomberg Television, and several events in the spring to debrief, what to expect next, and how to stay involved. There were a total of eight events with nearly 800 students registered across all programs. SUMMER FELLOWSHIPS
Every summer, Williams Fellows receive a stipend from Athena to intern in government agencies and offices, policy organizations, think tanks, or with elected officials (with the exception of campaigns) in New York, Washington, D.C., their hometown, their state capital, or anywhere in the world. Students gather weekly with Athena staff for intimate discussions that help them reflect on their internships and investigate how change happens through government.
By the end of the 10-week program, Fellows have a more expansive understanding of the inner workings of government and the processes by which the policies that impact our lives are made. Thanks to the generosity of Constance Hess Williams ‘66, this year the Williams Program increased from 2 students to 5. The 2021 Williams Fellows interned at the offices of the NY Attorney General and NJ Attorney General, NYC Mayor’s Office, NYC Council Member Mark Levine’s Office, and United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. PUBLIC LEADERSHIP EDUCATION NETWORK
We're committed to supporting students interested in making change through government in as many ways as possible — which is why every year, we introduce students to the Washington, D.C.-based Public Leadership Education Network (PLEN), the only national organization focused on preparing college women for leadership in the public policy arena. This year, PLEN offered virtual programming. 2 students participated in the weeklong seminars, including Women in Global Policy and PLEN X Women in Government Relations (WGR) DEI Summit.
The conference had much to offer, from insights on the facets of a career in foreign service, diplomacy, and in the Department of State. I also learned five helpful things that great leaders have: 1. a driving force or sense of mission 2. strong roots in the community 3. an ability to connect across lines that divide 4. bold ideas and bold action and 5. a resolve to pay it forward.
Audrey McNeal ‘24 PLEN 2021 Women in Global Policy seminar attendee
I had an amazing time at the PLEN Women in Global Policy Seminar. It was so inspiring to hear the stories of women succeeding in this field and to learn from them in the interest of defining my own future career path. I especially enjoyed the global policy simulation; it was extremely interesting to simulate the process of policymaking alongside other "stakeholders. I would definitely recommend PLEN to any individual who is interested in gaining important professional skills and making helpful connections with leaders in their desired field!
Abigail Kleiman '22 PLEN 2021 Women in Global Policy seminar attendee
CHANGEMAKING : : ADVOCACY The Athena Advocacy Institute is a 10-week summer program for students interested in exploring advocacy, in all its forms, as a tool for tackling our most difficult challenges. Members of the Institute receive stipends for their summer internships from Athena. Alongside their internships, they gather weekly for intimate conversations with experts and advocacy training aimed at advancing their understanding of what effective advocacy looks like and how they can advocate for change in the areas of importance to them. In 2021, the virtual environment afforded us the opportunity to build a cohort of 11 Advocacy Institute members who were interning at nonprofit organizations all over the world and feature guest speakers who were based in California, Washington DC, and more. 2021 Athena Advocacy Institute internship placements included She’s The First, Period Equity, Fortune Society, The Regilla Project, All In Together, and Damayan.
Rachel Barkin '22, Madeleine Morales '22, Aarushi Sharma '23, Shira Itskowitz '22, Sharmie Azurel '23, Ruchi Shah '22, Sewenet Haile '23, Gabriella Snyder '22, Helena Busansky '23, Ren Huang '22, and Wilaynes Gonzalez '22, pictured with Athena staff Victoria Lesourd, Erika Guzman, and Umbreen Bhatti.
Our sincere thanks to Marina Weitzner Lewin ’80, Daphne Fodor Philipson ’69, Francene Sussner Rodgers ’67, and Carol Krongold Silberstein ’69 & Alan Silberstein for their support.
CHANGEMAKING : : ENTREPRENEURSHIP Barnard students are nothing if not entrepreneurial! Nearly 100 students registered for our new and exciting offerings this year and more alums were involved than ever before. COFFEE CHATS
As a break from all those lecture Zooms, we hosted a series of intimate conversations with alum entrepreneurs. In the late fall, Claudia Polgar ‘19 joined us, and in the spring, we welcomed Kaylin Marcotte ‘12, Founder of Jiggy Puzzles; Libby Brittain ‘11, Founder of Quilt; Anam Lakhani ‘19 and Eve Halimi ‘19, Founders of Alinea Invest; and Megan Myers ‘08, Founder of A New Pipeline.
BARNARD STARTUP SUMMIT
Held June 17-19, 2021, in partnership with the Barnard Alumnae Entrepreneurs Network (BEnet), the Barnard Startup Summit was a virtual opportunity for students and recent alums to work with a successful group of Barnard alumnae entrepreneurs to develop their for-profit business ideas. 23 participants received a rapid introduction to the ins and outs of building a successful business including panels on fundraising and investment, a corporate formation 101 panel, and more.
Thank you to Jennifer Perusini ‘10, chair of BEnet, for her commitment and dedication to bringing this event to life, to our intern Christina Graham ‘23, and to all of our alumnae speakers and guests who donated their time and expertise.
CHANGEMAKING : : TECH
The Athena Digital Design Academy is a community of students interested in developing data literacy and coding skills alongside their peers in a low-stress, fun environment. The Athena Digital Design Agency is where students apply those skills to lead positive change. When classes went virtual, so did ADDA. Team members Cindy Espinosa ‘22, Jasmin Butler ‘22, Elise St Amant ‘23, Mae Viccica ‘21, and Syeda Anjum '21 organized and led a series of introductory workshops related to coding ,including a 3-part intro to HTML/CSS, and launched a newsletter, reaching 106 subscribers with information about ADDA events, related news, and job opportunities in the tech sector. We couldn't be more proud of how our students adapted and innovated this year! We look forward to working with our friends at Barnard’s Vagelos Computational Science Center in the coming year to do more to support this growing community of Barnard students using tech for good.
FINANCIAL WELL-BEING Athena’s original mandate included the development and implementation of financial fluency programs for Barnard students. These programs help students understand money and how it works, and give them the ability to make strategic decisions that can impact both their future and their ability to effect change in the world. These are crucial skills for any leader. Today, our aim is not just financial fluency, but financial well-being, and we have a new partner: Barnard's brand new Francine A. LeFrak Foundation Center for WellBeing, In 2020-21, over 300 students registered for financial well-being programs. Workshops included Where Does My Money Go? Understanding Your Pay Stub led by alumna Stephanie Minkove ‘00, where she demystified all the different allocations that can be expected on a paycheck; Investing For Newbies led by alumna Anam Lakhani ‘19 and Eve Halimi ‘19, who recently founded Alinea Invest to help younger investors; Renting in NYC led by Peyton Yen ‘21; Budgeting Basics led by Associate Director of the Empirical Reasoning Center, Fatima Koli ‘17; and Simple Habits That Will Help You Navigate Any Financial Crisis with Jacquette Timmons.
THE FOUNDING DONORS OF THE FINANCIAL FLUENCY PROGRAM
Laird Grant Groody ’67 Mollie Rosenthal Memorial Fund Patricia Harrigan Nadosy ’68 Susan Weber ’77
SCHOLARS PROGRAM The Athena Scholars Program, grounded in the study of women and leadership and complemented by experiential learning, offers students the opportunity to develop and deepen their understanding of their own leadership identity and abilities and engage with a multidisciplinary community of peers committed to leadership development. In the academic year 2020-2021, 32 Scholars successfully completed the Athena Scholars program and produced Social Action Projects. Social action projects demonstrate a Scholars’ creativity and leadership in solving social problems through entrepreneurship, education, and advocacy.
SKYE CLEARY, PHD, MBA
SYLVIE HONIG, PHD
Instructor, Senior Seminar
Instructor, Women & Leadership | Senior Seminar
Skye is a philosopher and author of “Existentialism and Romantic Love” (Palsgrave Macmillan, 2015). Skye is the managing editor of the American Philosophical Association’s blog, an advisory board member of Strategy of Mind (a global executive learning firm), and a certified fellow with the American Philosophical Practitioners Association. Previously, she was an international equity arbitrageur and management consultant. Her work has been published with “Aeon,” TEDEd, “Los Angeles Review of Books,” HuffPost, “The Conversation,” Business Insider, “The New Republic,” “New Philosopher,” “The Philosophers’ Magazine,” ABC Radio National, YourTango, “Womankind,” “Actualise Daily,” and others. She is currently writing a book on Simone de Beauvoir. She has a black belt in taekwondo and loves scuba diving.
Before coming to the Athena Center, Sylvie taught undergraduate sociology courses at Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Columbia, Tufts, and CUNY. She earned her Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Chicago, with a specialization in youth, life course theory, and qualitative methods. Her doctoral project, “Untangling the Apron Strings,” examines inequality in young adulthood. Her focus on transition to adulthood gives her a unique perspective into the particular challenges and opportunities faced by young women as they move through higher education and into the workforce. Her other research interests include urban sociology, gender, sexuality, and stratification. She has done qualitative research on sexuality in young adulthood, income instability, and HIV stigma at the intersection of race, gender, and class.
Athena helped me develop the skills necessary to develop, research, and create a sitcom. Neuroscience studies show that learning through humor enhances learning and memory. I began conducting research and reaching out to professors, such as Professors Bauer, Snow, Merrer, Worthen, and Cleary, just to name a few, many who also supported me when I had flare-ups from Lyme. I also learned from my Barnard education and my Athena studies that teamwork makes the dream work. So I reached out to my freshman year Biology lab partner and study buddy Ariana Chuback. I am now proud to say that together, with the support and guidance from faculty, and staff from Athena, we have developed a sitcom called the Atoms Bunch, which is meant to inspire a new generation of scientists that are made up of people from all backgrounds. And we are in conversation with multimedia conglomerates to produce it. Social change comes in many forms, and the best leaders and advocates leverage their unique change-making skill sets, welcome new methods from others, and willingly adjust how they engage in making change if doing so becomes advantageous. I never thought that I would be able to continue being a leader, and a better leader at that, because of the assumptions society makes about people who struggle with illness. But a Barnard education, our amazing faculty, and programs like Athena teaches us to control our own narratives and more importantly find strength in them.
ELIZABETH BIER '21
PRE-COLLEGE PROGRAMS In 2020-21, Athena continued to collaborate with Barnard’s Office of PreCollege Programs to offer meaningful, engaging, leadership development programming and opportunities for high school women. We’re committed to working with these young women, to help them develop their leadership and advocacy skills, while they are still in high school so they can begin to think of leadership as a practice. Something we hope they will take with them into college life — at Barnard or elsewhere! In Spring 2021, we hosted our first ever, term-time Leadership in Action (LIA) virtual series for 26 students from 9 countries including the United States, followed by a cohort of more than 100 students participating in our summer LIA series. Using design thinking mindsets and what they learned in their core classes, LIA teams created e-zines on topics they care deeply about, from breaking down harmful racial and gender stereotypes, to examining the prison industrial complex.
MALLA HARIDAT Program Director, Leadership in Action Malla Haridat is an entrepreneurship coach/strategist. As the founder and CEO of New Designs for Life, Malla is a nationally recognized expert in the specialized field of entrepreneurship education and has trained over 5,000 students. After the birth of her daughter, she created the Mom and Daughters Inc. brand to champion entrepreneurial thinking in young girls. Malla has traveled extensively throughout the United States working in partnership with companies developing creative solutions for entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs. Her company was awarded the New York City Small Business Award of the Year and has been featured in “The New York Times,” “Black Enterprise” magazine, HuffPost, and “Good Day Street Talk.”
ATHENA FILM FESTIVAL Films drive culture and influence how people feel, think, and perceive the world around them. For too long, the voices and stories of women have been overlooked. Since 2010, Barnard College and Women & Hollywood have worked to redress the gender imbalance in Hollywood, in front of and behind the camera, through the Athena Film Festival. The Athena Film Festival at Barnard College is the premier festival dedicated to celebrating and elevating women’s leadership and, through our Creative Development Program, we are supporting the artists who are telling these stories and helping get these movies made!
WE WENT VIRTUAL!
In 2021, Athena hosted its first ever virtual festival held throughout the entire month of March in celebration of Women's History Month. The 2021 festival was our largest program in history including 79 films, 19 pre-recorded panels that have over a thousand views, and 12 live Q&A events. We had our most inclusive festival yet with 90% women and non-binary directors and 51% women and non-binary directors of color. We were joined by over 12,000 attendees from all over the country and world.
As a festival known for its thoughtful curation, we wanted to dig even deeper in our programming for 2021 to meet this extraordinary, challenging time in our world. We developed 8 Program Areas that reacted and responded to the moment: MAKING IT HAPPEN: WOMEN IN STEM TEAR IT DOWN: DISMANTLING WHITE SUPREMACY COME AS YOU ARE DISCOVERY A LOOK AT HEALTH RESILIENCE THROUGH UNCERTAINTY IMAGINING A NEW FUTURE NOTHING ABOUT US WITHOUT US Curating with these Program Areas allowed us to bring out something special in each film we programmed and shape important conversations for our audience.
HIGHLIGHTS
BEANS
We couldn't have asked for a better way to kick off the 2021 festival than with a screening of Beans, Tracey Deer's critically acclaimed, breakout film. The film tells the story of a twelve-year-old Mohawk girl, Beans, who's forced to grow up fast during an indigenous uprising, known as the Oka Crisis in 1990. We were honored to have a live Q&A with Deer where she spoke on her personal connection to the film, growing up a Mohawk girl in this time, and Indigenous Rights movements today. THE DILEMMA OF DESIRE
In this fun, full documentary, we get to talk about everyone's favorite topic: the clitoris. The Dilemma of Desire follows biologists, artists, activists, designers, and sex workers to talk about the clitoris. Why has it been left out of textbooks? Why don't people know what it looks like? What is erotic power and how do we harness it? In this film, our audience got the chance to embrace cliteracy and it was wonderful.
BELLY OF THE BEAST
One of our top-selling films this year was the eye-opening investigative documentary Belly of the Beast. In this film, we're taken deep into the horrors of the United States prison system as we hear from incarcerated women who were involuntarily or forcefully sterilized. We follow brave activists as they fight this unjust system that treats them like they're numbers and not people.
CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
The Athena Film Festival Creative Development Program provides women and non-binary storytellers with opportunities to hone their craft and make meaningful connections that help them succeed in a difficult industry and advance their projects. During our festival and throughout the year, we host a variety of programs that provide women creatives with skillbuilding and networking opportunities. THE WRITER’S LAB
Our unique lab pairs each writer with a mentor for a series of 1:1 meetings to dig deep into the content, structure, and voice of the participant’s script. Participants of the lab also engage in peer-to-peer review and feedback with their fellow writers. In addition, for our television lab, writers take part in a mock writer’s room, where they learn how to break and develop a story for television. A key component of our lab is our industry day, where participants gain valuable insight and information on how to advance their careers. Industry day panels have covered topics including “How Representation Works,” “Path to Writing,” and “The Art of Pitching,” Keynote presenters included: Gina Prince-Bythewood, Kat Candler, and Chinonye Chukwu. 2020 Virtual Lab Writers Screenwriting
Television Writers
African Dogs Don’t Choke by Jane Barr forward by Mary Ann Anane Malpelo by Victoria Rivera Phantom by Jennifer Noonan *Alfred P. Sloan Fellow* Ray of Life by Kate Sheffield *Alfred P. Sloan Fellow* Shrimp by Nicole Jones The Firefly in the Jar by Deboleena Maitra We Are Golden by Keri Lee
#adulting by Naa Adei Mante Black Sands by Shahnaz Mahmud Crumb Bums by Leslie A. Nipkow Make It Happen by Akil Kumarasamy & Mona Kareem Plan C by Shanice Williamson Speak Easy by Sydney Haven Two-Dimensional by Sam Mallari Water by Pamela Winfrey
CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
WORKS IN PROGRESS PROGRAM SPONSORED BY SECRET SAUCE MEDIA
Our Works-in-Progress Program is an intensive pitch training and storytelling strengthening opportunity that includes a live pitch in front of a panel of esteemed industry representatives, introductions to a network of potential supporters and partners, and peer mentorship. Each filmmaker participates in intensive pitch training with Peabody Award-winning filmmaker, Judith Helfand who is the co-producer of the program. For 2021, we expanded our programming to include four rough cut films, and two films in development. 2021 WIP Pitch Filmmakers Coexistence, My Ass! Amber Fares; Rachel Leah-Jones
They Tried To Bury Us Bree Newsome Bass; Jacqueline Olive
The Untitled 19th* News Film Chelsea Hernandez; Heather Courtney; Diane Quon
Rooted Bridget Besaw; Adetoro Makinde
DEVELOPMENT GRANTS
This year, we awarded development funds to help filmmakers advance their projects. Emerging writers need opportunities and mentorship, but we all know that to make a movie, you need MONEY. We’re so excited we were able to financially support the following creators: Congratulations to our Breakthrough Awardee Ashley O’Shay for her film Unapologetic and our Alfred P. Sloan Athena List Development Grant Awardee Cherien Dabis! My movie was on the verge of falling apart when I received the Athena List Sloan Development Grant. The grant enabled my producer and I to save the picture by re-upping the book option for the underlying material. It also gave me the gift of time, time to dive back into the script and do one final, necessary rewrite before taking it out to find financial partners. I’m so endlessly grateful! Cherien Dabis
MELISSA SILVERSTEIN, COFOUNDER AND ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
ARTEMIS RISING FOUNDATION AND REGINA K. SCULLY, FOUNDING SPONSOR
Melissa Silverstein is the founder and publisher of Women and Hollywood, an initiative and website that educates, advocates, and agitates for gender diversity and inclusion in Hollywood and the global film industry. She is a speaker and consultant with extensive expertise in the area of women and Hollywood. She is the Artistic Director and CoFounder of the Athena Film Festival at Barnard College, She recently launched the Girls Club, a community for women creatives, culture-changers and storytellers to connect, create, network, advocate, support, and redefine entertainment.
Artemis Rising Foundation is dedicated to supporting media projects that transform our culture and challenge the status quo. Led by founder and CEO Regina K. Scully, the foundation champions powerful stories about some of the most challenging social justice issues of our time — including gender bias, healing, trauma, mental health, addiction, and women’s empowerment. With its focus on human rights, Artemis Rising Foundation has helped produce some of the most impactful documentary films of the past decade, inspiring meaningful policy change to legislation, education, corporate protocol and cultural norms. Films such as “The Invisible War,” “The Hunting Ground,” “Fed Up,” “Miss Representation,” and “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” address issues such as sexual assault in the military and on college campuses, women’s representation in the media, and pushing back against special interest groups. Working closely with renowned journalists and filmmakers, including Amy Ziering, Katie Couric, Kirby Dick, Morgan Neville, Ross Kauffman, and Freida Lee Mock, Artemis Rising Foundation has supported over 100 films, many of which have received Peabody, Emmy and Academy Awards. In addition to documentaries, Artemis Rising Foundation supports a variety of projects that include narrative film, television, theater, education, and social programs.
In 2018, Melissa was named to “Variety” magazine’s New York Power list, and in 2016, she received the Marie C. Wilson Emerging Leader Award from the Ms. Foundation for Women. In 2013, she published the first book from Women and Hollywood, “In Her Voice: Women Directors Talk Directing,” which is a compilation of over 40 interviews that have appeared on the site. Melissa has written for numerous publications including “The Washington Post,” “The New York Times,” “The Guardian,” “Forbes,” and Bloomberg.com, and her work has been featured on CNN and the BBC, as well as in “Newsweek,” “Salon,” “Chicago Tribune,” “The Washington Post,” “The New York Times,” and many other publications. She was a contributor to “The Tattooed Girl: The Enigma of Stieg Larsson and the Secrets Behind the Most Compelling Thrillers of Our Time.”
OUR TEAM
UMBREEN BHATTI ’00 | CONSTANCE HESS WILLIAMS ’66 DIRECTOR
Umbreen returned to the College in spring 2019 with a wealth of experience in media, law, and nonprofit management. Most recently, she served as director of the innovation lab at KQED, the Bay Area’s NPR and PBS station. Umbreen also serves on the board of Global Press, a news organization dedicated to reinventing the craft and business of international journalism by recruiting diverse populations of local women and training them to become professional, ethical journalists. As a John S. Knight Journalism Fellow at Stanford University, she developed and then hosted the podcast “Kaleidoscope: Reflections on Islam.” Beyond media, Umbreen has worked with universities, libraries, local government, and nonprofits to support their efforts to meet the needs of their constituents in new and exciting ways. Earlier in her career, she practiced law and taught law students as an adjunct professor.
VICTORIA LESOURD | CHIEF OF STAFF
Victoria oversees the day-to-day operations of the Center and provides critical fundraising and management support to the Athena Film Festival team. Victoria sits on the Operations and Management Group of the College and the Joint Faculty and Administrators' Benefits Committee. Victoria has more than 10 years’ experience in operations, development, and event management working for organizations including The Resolution Project, Room to Grow, Community Renewal Team, and the Wildlife Conservation Society. She has a background in international relations and a passion for working with young people committed to social change and social progress. Victoria holds an MSc in democracy and comparative politics from University College London and graduated with honors and an M.A. in international relations from the University of St. Andrews.
SARIT ABRAMOWICZ | ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTOR OF STUDENT PROGRAMS
Sarit oversees the Athena Scholars Program, the Athena Digital Design Agency, Summer Fellowships, and all other student-related initiatives. Prior to this role, she also supported the management of Entrepreneurs@Athena, where she worked with the student-run business, Athena Digital Design Agency (ADDA), promoted the Athena Pledge, and assisted with the Mastermind program. Before working with the Athena Center, Sarit directed the Women’s International Leadership Program at International House for seven years. In this role she was responsible for curriculum design, student advising, organizing logistics, and facilitating workshops and panels. Sarit has a master’s degree in international education from New York University and a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, politics & law and Spanish from Binghamton University.
ERIKA GUZMAN | STUDENT PROGRAMS ADMINISTRATOR
Erika ensures the effective and efficient operation of Student Programs run by the Center, helping to develop, implement, and plan student programs, manage the student programs budget, and oversee consultant contracting. Erika is experienced in all aspects of office administration in a variety of fields including corporate, government, healthcare, and higher education, providing high-level executive support to senior management. Since joining Athena in 2015, Erika’s passion for women’s leadership has only grown and is strengthened every day through her interactions with the broad network of students the Center serves. Erika holds an M.S. in Organizational Leadership from Lehman College and received her B.A.in Culture and Deviance Studies from John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
ALISA TCHERNIGOVA | SENIOR PROGRAMS ASSISTANT
Alisa has been working in higher education since 2013 in various administrative roles. She believes that there is a strong need for more women in leadership as well as a basic understanding of what leadership means and looks like. The Athena Center embodies this idea while actively empowering women, which is why she came to work at the Center. Alisa graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in psychology from Lehman College and is a member of the Golden Key Honor Society; Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology; and the Phi Beta Kappa Society. Alisa also has an M.S. in organizational leadership from Manhattan College. She hopes to use this degree to help other women realize their potential while expanding on her own.
KRISTIN MOLLOY | OPERATIONS MANAGER, ATHENA FILM FESTIVAL
Kristin has spent the past several years producing, managing, and otherwise working numerous film festivals and series, including Rooftop Films, Slamdance Film Festival, the Montclair Film Festival, and the Hamptons International Film Festival. Most recently, she programmed films for the Northside Festival, a music, innovation and film festival that takes place in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Kristin has also produced live concerts and worked on independent TV pilots. Kristin received a B.A. in culture and media studies from Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts at The New School.
KORY LOUKO ’17 | POST-BACCALAUREATE FELLOW
Kory works on the programming and operations sides of the Athena Film Festival, researching and reviewing film selections and working with the Operations Manager on all production aspects for the event. Kory is a New York-based writer, director, and comedian. She’s from a small farm town in Massachusetts that is adjacent to a town with the smartest lesbians in the U.S. She packed up her flannels from both groups and moved to NYC to pursue a career in comedy. Her recent credits include her directorial debut with “Man vs. Vibrator” and surviving multiple open-mic performances where men talk about pregnancy as a way to punish their wives (seriously). In addition to working with the Athena Film Festival, she has worked with the Nantucket Film Festival and the Tribeca Film Festival on their screenings teams. She graduated from Barnard College with a degree in English and film studies.
OPAL H. BENNETT | SENIOR PROGRAMMER, ATHENA FILM FESTIVAL Opal is responsible for curating the Athena Film Festival’s program of featurelength and short films. After several years in legal practice, Opal now programs a mixture of short, feature, and virtual reality films for several festivals — Athena, Nantucket, and Tribeca. She has also served on panels, juries, and grant committees. A Columbia Law grad, Opal holds a master’s degree in media studies from the LSE and received her B.A. from New York University.
OUR THANKS
Our success would not be possible without the generous support of our donors, the wisdom of our advisors, and the dedication of our staff and our community. We remain thankful to our founding donors, Francene Sussner Rodgers ’67, Constance Hess Williams ’66, and Lucille Zanghi and James Dow P ’10, who enabled us to start the Center; to Amy Crate '94 and Darrell Crate who enabled us to move into our next chapter, and to Constance Hess Williams ’66 for her decision in 2011 to endow the Directorship. We extend our gratitude to our active and dedicated Leadership Council, co-chaired by Claire Newman and Dr. Rochelle Cooper ’84. These Leadership Council members have given us their time and expertise, serving as thought partners, mentors, and film festival volunteers, and connecting with our students and staff. We are stronger because of the time and talent they donate, and we remain deeply grateful for their loyal support. To our committed group of faculty and student advisors, thank you for your guidance, insights, and invaluable support. As our Center enters its next chapter, your strategic advice is crucial, and your enthusiasm is contagious. To all of our friends, partners, sponsors, and donors, thank you for your continued and renewed commitment to our mission. Together, we are advancing women’s leadership and fostering a stronger, more empowered generation of Barnard students.
THE FOUNDING DONORS OF THE ATHENA CENTER FOR LEADERSHIP Francene Sussner Rodgers ’67 Constance Hess Williams ’66 Lucille Zanghi and James Dow P ’10 FOR THE ENDOWMENT OF THE CONSTANCE HESS WILLIAMS ’66 DIRECTORSHIP OF THE ATHENA CENTER Constance Hess Williams ’66 ENDOWMENT GIFTS Barnard Initiative for Women in Leadership Endowed Fund (Lucille Zanghi and James Dow P'10) Marina Weitzner Lewin ’80 Internship Fund Patricia Harrigan Nadosy '68 and Peter A. Nadosy The Daphne Fodor Philipson ’69 Fund for Women’s Leadership Francene Rodgers ’67 Athena Fellowship Program Carol Krongold Silberstein ’69 and Alan Silberstein Public Service Internship Fund Constance Hess Williams ʼ66 Fund for Political Internships Amy Crate '94 and Darrell Crate
THE FOUNDING DONORS OF THE FINANCIAL FLUENCY PROGRAM Laird Grant Groody ’67 Patricia Harrigan Nadosy ’68 Mollie Rosenthal Memorial Fund Susan Weber ’77
ATHENA LEADERSHIP COUNCIL
FACULTY ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Dr. Rochelle Cooper ’84, P ’12 (Co-Chair) Claire Newman (Co-Chair) Leila Ardehali ’18 Pooja Badlani ’01 Beth Bloomfield ’73 Jessica S. Desjardins ’10 Leah Dunaief ’62 Gabrielle Ferrara ’12 Julianna Goldman Gottlieb ’03 Eve Halimi ’19 Patricia Hong Anam Lakhani ’19 Marley Blue Lewis ’05 Victoria Meakin ’85 Julie Melwani ’09 Patricia Harrigan Nadosy ’68 Lida Orzeck ’68 Daphne Fodor Philipson ’69 Melissa Marrus Polinsky ’00 Francene Sussner Rodgers ’67 Ariella Salimpour ’17 Jayne Sosland ’87 Robyn Price Stonehill Jamienne Studley ’72 Marissa Wesely Dr. Margaret Withgott ’76 Eva Helene Yazhari ’06 Lucille Zanghi P ’10 Jacki Zehner P ’23 Anonymous
Elizabeth Cook Assistant Professor of Environmental Science
ATHENA CENTER GENERAL SUPPORT
J.C. Salyer Director of the Human Rights Program, Assistant Professor of Practice, Anthropology and Human Rights
Amy Crate '94 and Darrell Crate The Harnisch Foundation The Tuttleman Foundation Constance Hess Williams ’66
Alexander Cooley Tow Professor of Political Science Margaret Ellsberg Senior Lecturer in English Maria de la Paz Fernandez Assistant Professor of Neuroscience Sandra Goldmark Associate Professor of Professional Practice in Theatre, Director of Campus Sustainability & Climate Action Rebecca Jordan-Young Associate Professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Premilla Nadasen Professor of History Robert McCaughey Professor of History, Janet H. Robb Chair in the Social Sciences Debra Minkoff Professor of Sociology, Chair, Department of Sociology
Rae Silver Helene L. and Mark N. Kaplan Professor of Natural & Physical Sciences, Head of the Silver Neurobiology Laboratory Joan Snitzer Senior Lecturer in Art History, Co-Chair and Director of Visual Arts Dr. Rebecca Wright Director of the Vagelos Computational Science Center, Druckenmiller Professor of Computer Science
STUDENT ADVISORY BOARD
2020 ATHENA FILM FESTIVAL
Rachel Burns ‘24 Linda Chen ‘23 Chianna Cohen ‘22 Christina Graham '23 Sophia Houdaigui '21 Julia Hyman '22 Annabelle Jack ‘23 Annabel Kelly '22 Zakiya Lakha '21 Madeleine Morales '22 Dipashreya Sur ‘23
FOUNDING SPONSOR
ATHENA DIGITAL DESIGN AGENCY Anel Abdykarimova ‘23 Syeda Anjum ‘21 Eugenia Baek ‘23 Jasmin Butler ‘22 Cindy Espinosa ‘22 Zakiya Lakha ‘21 Jessica Moreira ‘22 Amanda Napoli ‘22 Rhea Oh ‘22 Elise St. Amant ‘23 Mae Viccica ‘21
Artemis Rising Foundation PREMIERE SPONSOR Alfred P. Sloan Foundation PLATINUM SPONSOR Netflix GOLD SPONSORS Dobkin Family Foundation Hanky Panky Secret Sauce Media Walt Disney Studios Christine A. Schantz Elizabeth Cuthrell SILVER SPONSORS JJ Abrams and Katie McGrath P ‘22 Fork Films Whitewater Films Warner Media Sheila Nevins BRONZE SPONSORS Adrienne Shelly Foundation FF2 Media MTV Documentary Films Stephens College Wendy Ettinger Joan Fallon Ann Kaplan Jenny Warburg Jan Lisa Huttner Lan Yang P ‘21 Jacki Zehner P ’23 Cornelia Ravenal Gale Anne Hurd
GOVERNMENT FUNDING This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. The Athena Film Festival is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. GENERAL GIFTS Lauren Sanders '87
ATHENA CENTER FOR LEADERSHIP
athenacenter.barnard.edu | @barnardathenacenter