That all changed when 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died in police custody on Sept. 16 after she was arrested for wearing her headscarf—or hijab—improperly. The nation’s youth responded with peaceful demonstrations that were met with tear gas and bullets. At least 233 have been killed to date, according to the U.S.-based rights monitor HRANA.

“It’s terrifying. This regime is killing children, women, and men just because they’re protesting,” said Ali, whose last name is being withheld to provide anonymity. “You know, when they kill a 16-year-old girl, when they kill a 22-year-old woman, when they kidnap girls and then give their corpses to their families after 10 days—you can imagine how hard it is.”

Islamic tradition dictates that bodies be buried quickly after death, usually within 24 hours.

The tragic irony of returning the deceased to loved ones 10 days later in the name of morality is just one example of how these violent repercussions have nothing to do with religion, despite the claims of those in power, said Ali.

“This is not Islam. This is not any religion. This is nothing. This is just about power. They’re abusing a word–Islam. They’re abusing this word in order to exploit people. And they have done that for 43 years.”

The Concept of ‘State’ in the Muslim World

Ali’s passionate stance, that the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran is anything but religious, is a complex subject to unravel, said Sarah Eltantawi, Ph.D., an associate professor of theology who specializes in politics and Islam in the contemporary world.

“The whole concept of a state is a modern, western invention,” she said. “Many modern states have been essentially imposed by colonialism on the Muslim majority world.”

She noted that the modern state is not an institution that had been envisioned by the early scholars of Islam, though they did talk about the necessity of political authority being rooted in Islamic legitimacy.

“In my personal opinion, trying to meld ideas of Islamic political rules with the modern state is a combination that is inherently a Frankenstein,” she said.

She added that the current protests cannot simply be framed as the result of zealous religious regulations. American sanctions have also played a role by damaging the Iranian economy and undermining the government’s ability to manage its economy. A strong economy makes strict laws a bit more palatable, she said.

“Everyone will say, ‘Saudi Arabia is only standing because it’s such an authoritarian kingdom.’ No, it’s because people are pretty rich.”

A Sophisticated Public Unaligned With its Government

She said Iran’s situation became combustible after the hardline government of President Ebrahim Raisi was elected in 2021 and tried to impose rules that the general public objected to, such as not showing a strand of hair from under their headscarves.

“Iranian women are very famous for barely even wearing the hijab in the first place,” she said.

Indeed, to compare Iran to places where rules like these are accepted, such as Yemen or Somalia, would be shortsighted, said John Entelis, Ph.D., professor of political science.

“Anyone who knows Iran has always understood its sophisticated nature,” said Entelis. “This is a very advanced society—always has been—that happens to be under the control of a theocracy.”

Indeed, Entelis noted that since the 1979 revolution, elected governments have come and gone without incident, though there always remained an “enormous” gap between the society and its government.

“What’s new is the degree to which society has been willing to respond and to protest the conditions under which they’ve had to exist for all these years,” said Entelis.

He noted that in today’s Iran, religion is often only understood in the context of politics.

“Politics dictates the religious idiom that is used to rationalize and legitimize the actions of those in power,” he said.

Throughout Iran women have been burning their headscarves to protest the government’s co-opting the headscarf as a way to control them. The women, however, do remain faithful to Islam. Their willingness to throw away the scarves should not be seen as an anti-religious act, it should be understood as a political act, he said.

“The women, to me, are an important agent of political change, especially young women,” he said.

Whether their efforts are enough to translate into a revolution is an ongoing question, he said. He noted that while many women in the Middle East region do not have the right to vote, Iranian women not only vote but they can also get elected to the Iranian Parliament. As such, they remain a significant power base. Nevertheless, Entelis said he’s skeptical of the ability of the women and their allies to be agents of change.

Elusive Change

“At the end of the day, the state’s ability and willingness to kill whoever it has to kill to stay in power makes me very pessimistic,” he said.

“And the longer the protests continue without some kind of resolution in their favor, the more difficult it will be for a transformation to take place of any kind.”

For his part, Ali remains hopeful, though he acknowledged the many hurdles. He said he’s seen many protests in his life, but he’s rarely seen them as regularly as he has over the past few weeks. Several protests have been held in New York City as well, with some Fordham students lending their voice to the cause.

And while Ali concurred with Entelis that political change may be very difficult to come by, he expressed optimism that a generational change is underway. Indeed, about half of Iran’s population is under the age of 30.

“When you look at the protests, then you see students who are the next generation of the country; they’re going to build this country again,” said Ali, who plans to return to Iran after finishing his degree. “Even if the revolution doesn’t happen now, it will happen in near future, because they will all remember this.”

“What my aunt kept teaching me was that I could do whatever I wanted to,” says Bartels, who began her own career on Wall Street in the 1980s. “She empowered me not to be intimidated just because I was a woman.”

Bartels grew up on City Island in the Bronx and attended community college before transferring to Fordham, where she deepened her newfound passion for analyzing the economy as “a puzzle with a lot of different moving parts.” She graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the Gabelli School of Business in 1985 and later earned a master’s degree in economics at Fordham’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.

Today, Bartels is a leading investment strategist with a knack for explaining financial concepts to the general public. As head of the Research Investment Committee and of exchange traded fund strategy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, she has often shared her expertise on outlets like CNBC. And she continues to come back to Fordham, she says, because “they gave me a chance.”

As a member of the President’s Council, Bartels has been a guest lecturer in classes and for the Smart Women Securities club, and has served as a judge at a Shark Tank-inspired event hosted by the Gabelli School. On October 23, she’ll be attending Fordham’s third annual Women’s Philanthropy Summit, where she’ll participate in a panel discussion titled “A View from the Top: Reflections on Success and Coaching the Next Generation of Women Leaders.” It’s an important event to her, she says, because “it’s women supporting women.”

“It’s nice that Fordham is creating an environment where women can come together and share their success and do good for whatever their cause is,” she says.

“You know, women have come a long way,” Bartels says, “yet we have a lot more to do. Many women used to be hostage to a husband and their views on how to use their wealth. Now women have their own finances and their own voice. But we still represent very small ratios in most lines of business.”

That’s why continuing to engage in mentorship is also important to Bartels. “For women and men alike, how do we grow without mentorship? It’s a way of giving back,” she says.

That desire to give back is something she sees in her daughter, Lorraine, a first-year student at Fordham College at Rose Hill. Bartels says that her daughter was most attracted to Fordham’s ethos of engaging with surrounding communities. She started her Fordham experience with Urban Plunge, an optional pre-orientation program run by the University’s Center for Community Engaged Learning where students participate in community-enriching programs throughout the Bronx and Manhattan.

“She is absolutely thriving,” Bartels says of Lorraine. “And I get to see Fordham in a new way—as a parent.”

What are you most passionate about?
At the end of the day, what’s most important to me are my two children. My main responsibility is to be a mother; it has to be.

My second passion, at least professionally, is that I love to assist people with their finances. I love sitting down and helping a client understand what they have and how we can get them to where they want to go.

Another passion I have, and something I’m really learning as I get older, is how to stay healthy and have a health program for longevity, starting with diet. In your 20s, you feel like you’re invincible; you snap back like a rubber band. In your 30s you still think you’re invincible, but you start to learn that the rubber band doesn’t snap back quite as fast. By the time you’re 40, the rubber band does not always snap back. And by the time you’re 50, you really need to have everything together.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
My Aunt Bernadette taught me the value of networking, and how a lot of life is about networking and meeting people. But I didn’t appreciate it until it worked for me. When I look at my past, through Wall Street, a lot of it was connected by people I met through the years and who I stayed in touch with, who became my friends within the industry both inside and outside my company. As you go through your career, you need a mentor, right? But you also need what’s called sponsorship, people that you work with who say “you are adding value to our business.” So you never know who that might be.

On a personal level, and we’ve all heard this from many different avenues, another piece of advice that has been important has been “learn how to accept yourself, take care of yourself, and love yourself.” As you get older and wiser, you really start understanding why that was said to you so often. You’re pulled in so many different directions, especially women, and many of us struggle with that. How many women have said, “Yeah, I just don’t do anything for myself.” And then they end up unhappy. You have to love yourself enough to take care of yourself. Or you can’t help anybody, you can’t be at the top of your game. And even if you get there, you can’t enjoy it.

What’s your favorite place in New York City? In the world?
My favorite place in the world is Alaska, the pristine and absolute beauty of the nature there. Especially in the winter. I get there and it’s my happy place. I’ve been there many times, fished there, seen whales and porpoises, been out on glaciers. The people are wonderful and grounded. It’s all about loving and being with nature.

My favorite place in New York is harder. I think it would be Battery Park. I worked down there for many years. My office was overlooking the water and I took the ferry twice a day. And I just loved being there on the river.

Name a book that has had a lasting influence on you.
So this is probably going to be very odd. Early in my career, my aunt told me to take this course on technical analysis. And the book we had to get for it was Technical Analysis of the Financial Markets by the teacher, John Murphy. When I read that book in that course, I was like, “This is it for me.” It changed my life; it gave me confidence that I could actually do it. He wrote it in a way that I could understand. For me, that was a light bulb moment.

Who is the Fordham grad or professor you admire most?
I’m going to say economics professor Dominick Salvatore. Not only is the man brilliant, and not only does he write great textbooks, he teaches in a way that makes economics exciting. It completely lights up, and he has this magnetism that comes through in his teaching. He’s great at taking concepts and explaining them so any student can understand. And that’s an important part of what I have to do in my work now, take the most complex situation or topics and be able to explain them to any audience.

This year, six Pioneering Women in Philanthropy will be honored for the personal and financial support they have given Fordham. Leaders in their fields, each one has invested in bettering their communities and the world in their own way. Here, they share their thoughts on the importance of mentorship, empathy, self-confidence, and more on the path to success—for them and for all women.

In cosmetics, which is where I particularly grew up, we had these wonderful [women]  role models. … If you’ve been given this road map and you see that others have gone before you and achieved, you never have in your mind the notion of failure. You have the notion that you can do it too, if you’re good enough and smart enough and make the right decisions.
—Rose Marie Bravo, CBE, TMC ’71

Bravo grew up in the Bronx, the daughter of an Italian-born barber and a seamstress from Sicily. A Bronx High School of Science graduate, she earned a bachelor’s degree in English cum laude at Fordham’s Thomas More College in 1971 and later held leadership positions in several major fashion businesses—including Macy’s and Saks Fifth Avenue. She took over Burberry in 1997 and is widely credited with transforming the classic brand and greatly expanding its markets during her nine-year tenure as CEO. In 2006, Queen Elizabeth II recognized Bravo’s achievements in promoting British fashion, naming her a Commander of the British Empire.

Bravo will deliver a keynote address, “From the Bronx to Buckingham Palace,” at this year’s Women’s Philanthropy Summit.

I entered the work world bolstered by an amazing education in liberal arts that made me feel strong and confident. Still, to rise up the corporate ladder meant more than just feeling confident. I soon learned that it meant persistence and resilience, not being afraid to ask for help, and so much more. I quickly realized the importance of communicating, listening, adaptability, and using words like “us” “we” and “with.” I learned that the best leaders hire strong people, set goals, don’t make excuses, are empathetic, and understand their own self-worth.
—Carolyn Dursi Cunniffe, Ph.D., UGE ’62, GSAS ’65, ’71

Dursi Cunniffe grew up in a family of eight, including two brothers who also went to Fordham. Fluent in French and Italian, she studied at the Sorbonne and the University of Perugia as well as Fordham, where she earned bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in French literature. She had a successful career as an executive in the cosmetics industry and, later, in executive recruiting. She spent 13 years at Revlon, rising to vice president at a time when that title was a rarity for women. She was a senior vice president and the key strategist in recruiting senior talent at Cablevision Systems Corporation before retiring in 2011. Her husband, Maurice “Mo” Cunniffe, FCRH ’54, is a fellow Fordham grad.

From my parents, I was always encouraged to be kind and fair—and to always let people know they are valued and loved. I think women have that capacity to inspire people by their passion, compassion, and empathy. Women stand tall for their beliefs and by nature have the ability to listen and compromise. We know how to bring people together and we are problem solvers.
—Barbara Dane, Ph.D., GSS ’67, ’85

Dane is a retired professor of clinical social work who has maintained a private clinical practice, working with dying and grieving persons and their families, since 1971. She earned both her M.S.W. and Ph.D. in gerontology from Fordham’s Graduate School of Social Service. She has taught at Fordham, Columbia University, and NYU, and has a substantial publishing record in social work. Dane was awarded a summer fellowship from the National Institutes of Health to conduct research on aging, and she was among the first recipients of a social work leadership grant from the Soros Foundation’s Project on Death in America. Her research on Thai women coping with HIV/AIDS and the role of meditation was presented at the Seventh International Interdisciplinary Congress on Women in Tromsø, Norway.

What I know is that we each have the opportunity to change a life every day, to share wisdom from experiences that can help one another, even if we don’t get to hear the triumphant follow-up story. What counts is what we give to lift others up around us, no matter how big or small our gift may be.
—Valerie Rainford, FCRH ’86

Rainford is head of advancing black leaders and diversity advancement strategies at JPMorgan Chase. She earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Fordham. Prior to joining JPMorgan Chase, she served at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York for 21 years, where she rose to become the most senior black woman there and the first to rise to senior vice president. The author of an award-winning memoir, Until the Brighter Tomorrow: One Woman’s Courageous Climb from the Projects to the Podium (Eloree Press, 2014), she has dedicated much of her life to uplifting others by sharing her story of perseverance, as she did with local Bronx students on the Rose Hill campus in August.

Rainford will deliver a keynote address, “Paying It Forward: A Journey of Resilience and Giving Back,” at this year’s Women’s Philanthropy Summit.

Being a leader is about continuous learning, hands-on engagement, and the power of giving time and resources. Women do this exceptionally well. The challenge is to understand the exciting opportunities for change, and to still find time for self-care and reflection.
—Susan Conley Salice, FCRH ’82

Conley Salice is the president of the Salice Family Foundation. She also serves on the boards and chairs the development committees of Fordham University, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York, and Greenwich Hospital. Before shifting her focus to philanthropy, she worked in the business sector for two decades. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Fordham College at Rose Hill and a master’s degree in fundraising and philanthropy from New York University. She was one of the keynote speakers at the inaugural Women’s Philanthropy Summit in 2017.

Women who have succeeded in business need to discuss how we navigated the workplace. These experiences are especially relevant today as some business leaders and politicians are seeking to erode the progress that women have made in this world. Women continually face discrimination based on their gender and have an especially tough path to managerial roles in many organizations. A man is considered tough when he makes a strong point while a woman is considered to be too emotional when making a similar point in a similar tone of voice. These stereotypes need to be put to rest. We must lead through a combination of common sense, empathy, and determination.
—Donna Smolens, FCRH ’79, GSAS ’81

Smolens has been a senior advisor at Insight Partners, a leading global private equity and venture capital firm, since 2015. Prior to joining Insight, she worked at Portfolio Advisors LLC, was a voting member on the investment committees of numerous Portfolio Advisors funds, and was on the advisory boards of 13 private equity funds. She previously worked at Crossover Ventures, DLJ Securities Private Fund Group, General Motors Investment Management, and New York Life Insurance Company. She graduated from Fordham University with both a B.A. and an M.A. in economics.

The many manifestations and consequences of violence—and potential measures to address these pressing issues—were the topic of an Oct. 27 conference titled the Impact of Violence on Health and Education, presented by the Fordham Graduate School of Social Service, the Fordham Institute for Women & Girls, and the International Health Awareness Network. The conference placed special emphasis on gun violence, school violence, and sexual and gender-based violence.

“We’re living in a violent time,” said Sandy Turner, Ph.D., associate professor at the Graduate School of Social Service and director of the Institute for Women & Girls. “All we have to do is turn on the news for five minutes and we know that. I think it affects all of us in one way or another just about every day.”

Global perspectives

The event, held at Fordham University School of Law, brought together a roster of experts from a wide array of disciplines—ranging from academic researchers to medical doctors to political leaders—who gave attendees a range of perspectives on how violence impacts societies around the world and what can be done to mitigate the tragic outcomes.

Ambassador Modest Jonathan Mero, the permanent representative of Tanzania to the United Nations, described the Tanzanian government’s efforts to combat domestic violence and promote gender equality. Councilwoman Helen Rosenthal, who represents the Upper West Side in the New York City Council, described municipal legislators’ efforts to allocate more police resources toward investigating instances of sexual assault.

Protecting human rights at every stage of life

Individuals can suffer lifelong effects from violence suffered before they are even born, said Dr. Melody Behnam, an obstetrician-gynecologist in private practice. Physical or emotional abuse of pregnant women can result in lasting complications for both mother and child, she explained, ranging from maternal depression to deficits in cognitive function for children. Clinicians must be trained to recognize domestic violence and implement early intervention techniques, Behnam said.

“This is not just a women’s question—it’s humanity’s question,” she said. “We have to take responsibility to end it.”

Janna C. Heyman, Ph.D., holder of the Endowed Chair of the Henry C. Ravazzin Center on Aging and Intergenerational Studies at the  Graduate School of Social Service, described how older adults can be susceptible to physical, sexual, and emotional abuse because they often suffer from isolation and have no one to turn to for support.

Living a life of dignity, free of abuse, is a human right that we must ensure is protected throughout an individual’s lifespan, Heyman said, “from pregnancy all the way though to older adults and even in death and dying.”

Finding solutions

The Graduate School of Social Service held a contest for students, who submitted papers presenting policy solutions addressing the impact of violence on health and education. Elaine Congress, D.S.W., a founding member of the Institute for Women & Girls and professor and associate dean for continuing education and extra-mural programs at the Graduate School of Social Service, presented awards to the winners at the conference.

Yingying Zhu, an MSW student, won an award for her proposal on improving safety in schools. Among other policies, Zhu advocated for providing additional training to teachers and staff on conflict resolution and classroom management and hosting educational workshops and support groups for parents.

“I’m so glad that policy courses are part of the MSW curriculum,” she said. “Learning about policy has changed my perception about what we can do to advocate.”

– Michael Garofalo

One of the First Black Women Admitted to the New York Bar Graduated from Fordham Law

In 1921, Ruth Whitehead Whaley became the first black woman to enroll at Fordham Law School. She graduated at the top of her class in 1924 and, one year later, became one of the first black women admitted to practice law in New York.

Fordham Had the First Female Dean of Any U.S. Jesuit University

In 1939, Fordham chose Anna E. King, Ph.D., to be dean of the School of Social Service. King became not only Fordham’s first female dean but also the first female dean at any Jesuit university in the country. In 1945, she was elected president of the American Association of Schools of Social Service. That same year, she initiated the school’s first master’s degree program. She served as dean until 1954.

The First Black Woman in the Coast Guard Later Taught Psychology at Fordham

As a young girl in Oklahoma, Olivia Hooker, Ph.D., survived the 1921 Tulsa Race Riot, hiding under her kitchen table as white men burned down her affluent black community. Twenty-four years later, she became the first black woman to enlist in the U.S. Coast Guard. She taught psychology at Fordham from 1963 to 1985. In 2015, shortly before celebrating her 100th birthday, she reminisced about her time at Fordham: “Everybody helped each other and thought highly of each other and loved to be there.”

The Geraldine Ferraro Rose Grows on Campus

In 1984, Walter Mondale, the Democratic nominee for president, selected New York Congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro, LAW ’60, as his running mate—the first time a national party nominated a woman for vice president of the United States. “There are no doors we cannot unlock,” the Fordham Law alumna said during her acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention. The ticket lost, but Ferraro helped place a new generation of women on equal—and more secure—footing with their male counterparts.

In 2007, Fordham honored her by hosting the ceremony introducing the Geraldine Ferraro rose. Sales of the hybrid tea rose funded studies and treatment of multiple myeloma, which Ferraro lived with for more than a decade before her death in 2011. The University planted the rose on the Lincoln Center campus.

Women Had Their Own Undergraduate College for 10 Years

In fall 1964, the University opened Thomas More College, an undergraduate school for women. Though women had been earning Fordham degrees in law, education, and social service for decades, the Thomas More students initiated a profound cultural shift. “It was a man’s world when we got here, but I think we quickly changed that,” Margaret Bia, M.D., TMC ’68, a member of the school’s first graduating class, recalled in 2014. The college closed in 1974, after Fordham College at Rose Hill began accepting women.

The Pioneer of Psychometrics was a Fordham Professor

Anne Anastasi, Ph.D., received the National Medal of Science from President Ronald Reagan in 1987. Prior to that, Anastasi taught psychology at Fordham from 1947 to 1985, and also chaired the department. Nicknamed the “test guru”, Anastasi wrote a textbook, Psychological Testing, in 1954 that is considered by many to be the definitive text in the field of testing. The book is in its 9th printing.

In 2008, Fordham created the Anne Anastasi Chair in Psychometrics and Quantitative Psychology in her honor; David V. Budescu, Ph.D., is the holder of the chair.

Mary Barneby, GABELLI ’80, CEO of the Girl Scouts of Connecticut; Mary Lou Quinlan, GABELLI ’82, an author, actor, entrepreneur, and marketer; and Susan Conley Salice, FCRH ’82, a full-time philanthropist, spoke with FORDHAM magazine about the November 6 summit. They see it as an opportunity for women to network and build community, and to understand how and why women give differently than men.

Though they come from different backgrounds, they’ve each come to the same conclusion: That giving to causes they care about—in whatever way they can—is an essential part of their lives and identities.

Why create a philanthropy summit just for women?

Mary Lou Quinlan: I think the word inaugural is probably the most telegraphic—it’s the fact that Fordham, and this is not uncommon among large institutions, is taking this first step to reach out directly to women. A lot of development work by default (or direction) falls primarily to targeting and engaging men. So I think the pioneering nature of this is powerful. And I’m always excited when women come together to learn, share common experiences, and give back.

Mary Barneby: I also think that we know how important it is for women to feel that they have control over things that are really relevant and important to them, that they have the power and opportunities to make the world a better place and have an impact on generations to come. Women at all stages of their professional and personal lives can be philanthropic. But I think even some women who have larger financial resources sometimes don’t feel they’re entitled or able to make a difference.

Susan Conley Salice: I agree. It’s an incredible opportunity for Fordham to recognize and encourage women to lead, participate, and mentor. We will start that conversation about giving, to lead the way and make a path for women in the Fordham community, and to show how we can make an impact individually but also collectively.

Do women really give and lead differently than men?

MB: Women often come together as a community to give to an important cause; that’s one way we approach giving differently than a guy with a big checkbook.

MLQ: Exactly. To build on that, women see giving as investing. Here, we’re investing in Fordham’s future, in generations to come. And what I’ve observed is men are just quicker to pull the trigger. Boom, that’s it. Women want to trust, to form a relationship, to have a conversation, to really understand the story and the purpose and the outcome of what their giving is for. It’s about being part of a community and understanding how we, uniquely and collaboratively, can have a real effect.

MB: You know, I really am careful about not characterizing a whole group in one way, but I will say that, in my experience and in the research, there is a sense that we as women do lead in a collaborative way. It’s a generality, but I think it’s true, that women are more inclusive in the way they solve problems. The value of this event won’t be about who’s the keynote; it’s about how we work, talk, and collaborate to understand the value of philanthropy and of giving back to Fordham. Because that’s what will create the opportunity for not just young women but young women and men who are gonna really use knowledge they get here to create a better world.

SCS: For me, giving always started with volunteerism. I think that’s very common with women, because we do want to get involved, we want to understand an organization and its goals and how we’re going to get there, what’s the path. Many women feel good about that hands-on involvement. As I continued, I took on leadership positions—but it’s really a gradual process; I had to ask how I could make a difference at the next level. I do believe it’s harder for women to see ourselves in that leadership position. We women have to do more positive self-talk.

Do you consider yourself a philanthropist?

MLQ: I’ve been donating for a long time and, collectively, I’ve given a lot, but the word “philanthropist” sounds to me like Daddy Warbucks sitting there and throwing money out of a big vat, you know, and being big in the world. I think of myself as an advocate for organizations I care about. Because it means I support you, I speak for you, I carry you with me, I fight for you. And, in that role, I’ve served on boards, I’ve written copy, I do what I can do. Everybody has a different talent. But I didn’t grow up in a family where we had any extra money at all, or where we were writing checks or had any history or relations who did it. And my husband grew up similarly. But when I got married, I guess it was just in his training or something to give back. So I learned a more expansive attitude from him and, as time went on, my giving expanded.

When you’re younger you feel like, gosh, I have this giant bill hanging over my head because I just graduated, I’ve got nothing for you. But you do. You have to start somewhere. You build that connection. We all come from somewhere, and we all have that moment where we can say, OK, I’m not only an advocate, I’m going to put some money on the table for you.

MB: You know, as you were talking, three little words came into my head. Maybe they’re overused, but they’re time, talent, and treasure. Susan talked about volunteering. And Mary Lou talked about what she does for organizations. And the last piece is sharing your wealth with others, and I think that happens over time. But it all starts with passion, and I think, as women, we’re much more open to our passion and our hearts. Fulfilling that passion is really important, and you get paid back so much.

SCS: Well, I have only recently accepted the word “philanthropist” as my job description. I don’t currently hold a traditional, full-time job that comes with a title; my full-time job is philanthropy, every day doing, researching, meeting about issues to make a positive impact. But money isn’t the only resource. I do it with, as Mary said, time, talent, and treasure. And, like Mary Lou, I’ve grown into this role in large part because my husband knew my passion and encouraged me to pursue it, and I haven’t looked back! It can be a little uncomfortable because, frankly, when you say you’re a philanthropist, especially as a woman, people look at how you dress, what you’re carrying, and automatically certain things come to mind.

MB: But, you know, we have to bust out of that! We do! We totally do, and we’re trying to. Susan, you can be a philanthropist, and Mary Lou, you’re a philanthropist!

MLQ: I’m listening to this and I just thought, wait a minute, I know I use that word. And there it is, on the navigation bar of my website. So you’re right, if philanthropy is what we do, why can’t we be philanthropists?

SCS: I’m sure there are a few older, wealthy people who consider themselves “worthy” of that title. But really, I think that’s part of the whole conversation, getting comfortable with giving regardless of what you call it. That’s a whole process with women. We’re often uncomfortable taking on, in many cases, roles that are historically assigned to men. But in the field of giving, this is our opportunity. This summit is our opportunity to start the conversation and get comfortable with saying “yes.”

MB: I tell my little girl scouts they’re philanthropists, because even at that age they’re learning that they have this power to make change by doing good. And I think that, you know, if we flip that conversation and it’s not about the money but about the wealth you bring to the world, then we should all be pounding our chests and saying we’re philanthropists.

Learn more about Fordham’s inaugural Women’s Philanthropy Summit, and join us on November 6.

Interview conducted, edited, and condensed by Alexandra Loizzo-Desai.

It’s a surprising statement to make about college, coming from someone who has been through frightening experiences before—namely addiction and incarceration.

Cochrane said that when she went to college in the 1970s, she experienced prejudice as an African-American woman. But on settling in at GSS, one of Fordham’s most diverse schools, she said she found a supportive community.

“We get a lot of different perspectives, from Asia to Africa. There’s so much information within a classroom because of the diversity,” she said.

Cochrane’s ultimate goal is to start a nonprofit that will help formerly incarcerated women like herself. She said that as a full-time social worker, she’s already benefited from her education by learning to open herself up to different cultures and ethnicities.

“It’s a wonderful feeling to learn to understand someone’s culture, and work with them regardless of race.”

For her part, Cochrane said that by simply showing up to class, she feels she’s helped change a lot of her fellow students’ perceptions about incarcerated women.

“My classmates never thought that a woman who was in prison would be in [graduate]school,” she said.

Many of the women she met in prison hadn’t finished high school, said Cochrane. She and some others had college degrees—there were even a few women with doctorates.

“I believe that everything happens for a reason, and the reason I, as an educated woman, went to prison was to get to know former offenders and their paths,” she said. “So many of them have talents, like writing poetry, sewing, and cosmetology. But someone has to bring it out of them. Who can do it better than a peer?”

“I’ll always be their peer,” she said.

She said she’s grateful that TV shows, like Orange is the New Black, have brought attention to the ever increasing numbers of women in prison.

“The show helps people know that women in prison are being abused, separated from their loved ones—especially their children, and [that we]live in a judicial system that isn’t fair,” she said.

She said that Fordham has prepared her to help the diverse population of women getting out of prison. She credits her classmates with opening her eyes.

“I draw my inspiration, my aspiration, and purpose from them,” she said. “You have to care for all human life to be in this profession.”

]]> 68084 https://now.fordham.edu/colleges-and-schools/graduate-school-of-social-service/scholar-to-address-issues-facing-women-in-refugee-camps/ Fri, 10 Mar 2017 20:52:28 +0000 http://news.fordham.sitecare.pro/?p=65516

Empowering women in refugee camps may seem a laudable goal, but it faces steep challenges among refugees in the Syrian crisis, said Kathryn Libal, Ph.D., associate professor in community organization and director of the UConn Human Rights Institute at the University of Connecticut.

Libal will be addressing the needs of women refugees in a lecture and panel discussion at a symposium titled, “Migration and Women’s Rights: Employment Challenges, Empowerment, and Best Practices.” Sponsored by the Graduate School of Social Service on Sat., March 18 from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., the symposium, which is free and open to the public, will explore how economic empowerment is crucial to women’s rights.

Libal has researched the refugees from both the Iraq and Syrian conflicts. She said that, unlike Iraqi refugees who have settled into cities like Jordan, most Syrian refugees live in highly secured camps where the movement of goods is limited, making trade nearly impossible. Compounding the problem is the simple fact that shelter, food, and water remain a primary concern.

“[Maintaining the] basic conditions of daily life make it challenging for women to even think about work,” she said.

Libal said she will also examine how economic empowerment of refugees must be navigated alongside the host populations’ needs. Those communities may already have a high level of unemployment, as was the case in Jordan when the Iraqi refugees arrived.

“You can’t set up parallel systems of support where the newcomers have an advantage,” said Libal.

The talk represents the first time that Libal has drawn a connection between her research on the two refugee populations.

“I will be fairly critical that you can’t just economically empower women in these situations,” she said. “There’s already a large failure to fund basic things like heat and housing and to take care of the minimum needs.”

““We box ourselves in to the approaches that are tried,” she said. “[But] you can’t assume that a microcredit or handicraft project will always work. I look forward to hearing the panelists’ ideas, especially models that address getting women ready for post-resettlement.”

To the women of the Gabelli School, though, it’s business as usual.

“The environment is open here,” said Rosa Romeo, a clinical assistant professor of accounting and taxation, who is the faculty moderator of Fordham’s chapter of Smart Woman Securities (SWS).

“There’s a tone at the top that as long as you do the work and you get the grades, you can accomplish what you want. There is no ‘you can’t do this because you’re a girl’ sentiment. You want this role—go for it. You want this internship—go for it.”

One needn’t look further than SWS to see this attitude in play, Romeo said. A nonprofit organization with chapters on 21 campuses around the country, SWS focuses on investment education for undergraduate women. The Gabelli School’s chapter is among the oldest—Fordham and Yale, which launched in January 2009, were the third and fourth colleges to form chapters following Harvard, where SWS originated, and Columbia.

“SWS is definitely shaping my experience at Fordham,” said Lauren Kelly, a sophomore finance major who joined SWS during her freshman year. “It’s about mentorship, building networks, and educating others. Basically, it’s an environment of women helping women.”

With more than 50 active members, SWS is one of the largest clubs on campus. Each new recruit is paired with an upperclassman member, who serves as a mentor in anything from club activities to classes to internships to interviewing.

“We encourage people to go for coffee with their mentors, to not be afraid to ask questions,” said Erika Schwartz, a junior accounting major and the chief operating officer of Fordham SWS. “The business world is competitive, so we emphasize supportiveness and being there for one another.”

Throughout the year, the group offers numerous educational seminars for its attendees, covering themes from résumé building to investment minutiae. Their cornerstone activity is an investment project, in which the students learn to research and analyze stocks and present their recommendations to a panel of judges.

In December, a group that included Elizabeth Fonger, a junior at Fordham College Rose Hill, Lorem Basile, a sophomore at the Gabelli School, and Kelly took their stock skills to Boston for the national SWS stock pitching competition. The group pitched Lululemon, and came in second place, behind Harvard.

“I think I’ve gotten a lot opportunities [from SWS]and have been the beneficiary of good mentorship. And I’ve been able to then pass that on to younger members,” Kelly said.

As chief development officer for SWS, Kelly recruits speakers for the group’s annual Women in Leadership Conference, which takes place this year on April 8. In past years, the group has hosted speakers such as Barbara Desoer, CEO of Citibank, N.A., and Andrea Jung, former CEO of Avon Products, as well as Fordham alumnae MaryAnne Gilmartin, FCRH ’86, president and CEO of Forest City Ratner, and Patricia David, GABELLI ’81, global head of diversity for J.P. Morgan Chase.

Their talks—which draw both male and female students—are reliably empowering, Kelly said. Last year, Liz Ann Sonders, GABELLI ’90, the senior vice president and chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab, spoke about her business education at Fordham and the successful career that followed.

“Someone asked her why she wanted to go into finance, and she said to us, ‘I just thought it was the coolest thing ever to be a woman on Wall Street.’ We all loved that!” Kelly said.

“[SWS] isn’t only about education and building a network. It’s about smashing the perception that there aren’t women in senior-level positions in the business world.”

“Business is, in many ways, still a man’s world. So, if you’re a woman, it is more important to project knowledge, to be curious and confident,” said Donna Rapaccioli, PhD, dean of the Gabelli School. “To this end, there are opportunities around every corner at the Gabelli School for women to learn and to take on leadership roles.”

The business world has come a long way in working toward gender equality, Rapaccioli said. Still, in many areas there remains a “subtle bias” both about women’s ability to fulfill high-level roles and their interest in pursuing such roles in these male-dominated, high-intensity environments.

“What will finally eliminate this bias is a critical mass of extraordinarily talented women surprising the field—planting a stake in the ground in areas where people expect to see men,” Rapaccioli said.

“Our female students are these women. They are making me extraordinarily proud now, and I cannot wait to see what they are accomplishing when they are 25, 35, or 50.”

The event, “Fashion + Sustainable Development + Women’s Empowerment,” brought together designers, models, academics, and fashionistas for a runway show and panel discussion about the unique ways that the fashion industry is embracing sustainable practices and improving social and environmental conditions.

The event was sponsored by the Institute for Women and Girls at the Graduate School of Social Service (GSS) and hosted by Lyn Kennedy Slater, PhD, a clinical associate professor at GSS and creator of the popular blog The Accidental Icon.

“GSS and the sustainable fashion movement share the goals of environmental, economical, and social justice, and the realization of human rights and the empowerment of women and children,” Slater said. “When one comes to a conversations about similar issues from different perspectives, new and creative approaches to solving social problems can emerge.”

In her introduction to the event, Veronique Lee, merchandising director for Modavanti, said that fashion is the second largest “dirtiest industry” in the world, coming in just behind the oil and gas industry. Besides producing large amounts of toxic dyes and chemicals, the fashion industry is a significant consumer of natural resources and is notoriously wasteful.

The industry is in need of major overhaul to meet the global challenges we face, Lee said.

“We’re seeing this revolution happen with cars and with food, and now it’s time to start impacting our awareness of how we get our clothes, where they come from, and who is making them,” she said.

Nearly a dozen designers were present for the runway portion of the event, which showcased clothing and accessories that were sustainably made and ethically sourced. Models wove through the aisles of Pope Auditorium wearing clothes made from recycled water bottles and fishnets and sporting artisanal jewelry made by Alaskan and Peruvian natives.

Several designers emphasized that through their brands they aim to make positive social as well as environmental change. Panelist Chid Liberty, owner of the fashion company Uniform, said that for every purchase made, the company donates a school uniform to a child in Liberia.

“It’s about human, environmental, and financial well-being,” said panelist Amy Hall, director of social consciousness for Eileen Fisher. “This means [products or initiatives]that have the lowest environmental impact possible, the greatest social impact possible, and enough financial return to make that work possible.”

Lee recommended that consumers be mindful of what they are buying. Modavanti, she said, created a badge system to make it easy for consumers to tell whether the items they purchase are eco-friendly and ethically sourced. Smartphone apps can also help buyers research products and brands.

Most importantly, Lee said, don’t underestimate the power that consumers—particularly women—have in revolutionizing fashion. According to Forbes, women control $20 trillion in annual consumer spending, making them the largest market opportunity in the world.

“Women have enormous control through their purchasing power and influence, and it’s increasing,” Lee said. “Women can change fashion—the companies are listening.”

The panel was moderated by Jeff Trexler, associate director of Fordham School of Law’s Fashion Law Institute, and included:

• Amy Hall, director of social consciousness for Eileen Fisher;
• Rebecca van Bergen, executive director of Nest;
• Debera Johnson, executive director at the Pratt Institute; and
• Chid Liberty, co-founder of Liberty & Justice.

March, as I’m sure you know, is Women’s History Month, and the University rightly celebrates it with a number of well-attended events. I write to you this month about a darker issue concerning women, and one that is affecting every college and university in the country: campus sexual assault. It is a crime and a sin—I do not use that word lightly—overwhelmingly against women, likely underreported, and emotionally devastating.

To the men reading this—perhaps you are expecting a scolding, or a list of prohibitions. When, tell me, in the long, sordid history of the world has that ever changed one person’s heart, much less their actions? I could cite scripture. At length. I could tick off dire consequences. I could tell you what not to do in a great many ways, none of which would likely have any effect. No, having made it this far in life, I believe that you know the rules. Instead, let me ask of you something that may not come naturally. I ask that you imagine what it is like to be on the receiving end of a sexual assault. I ask, just for a moment, and just in the privacy of your own mind, to imagine the helplessness, fear, rage, and disgust you might feel if you were sexually attacked, coerced—physically or otherwise—and violated. It is, I realize, an inherently discomforting thing to do, but it is powerful precisely because it is discomforting.

Call it empathy, or the golden rule, or Jesus’ commandment to love one another. However you name it, putting yourself in another’s place—in this case a woman’s place—is an everyday talent that can be cultivated, and that will serve you well your whole life through. I can tell you from many confessions I’ve heard that people are burdened with guilt and shame to the end of their days for offenses smaller than sexual assault. I do not think, in any case, that this is too much to ask. People choose to attend and work at Fordham for many reasons, but an important one is that they find the culture here a congenial one. There is nothing more central to Fordham’s culture than care for the whole person, and few things further removed from our values than sexual assault. (Let me note that I am fully aware that women can sexually assault men, and that same-sex assaults occur: they are as unequivocally wrong as men’s sexual assaults on women, if far less common.)

To the women reading this letter, let me say that sexual assault is not your fault. It is never your fault. Your judgment, good, bad, or indifferent, neither excuses sexual assault nor mitigates it in the slightest degree. Nothing gives anyone an excuse, much less a right, to violate your boundaries, or to make any sexual contact with you without your consent. Period.

This is not merely my opinion, this is Fordham policy.

The University has extensive and robust mechanisms for dealing with sexual assault and harassment, and if you’re not familiar with them, you should be. They are available on the Fordham website, as are the names and numbers of the appropriate contacts. I’ve appended a list, below.

This is not the most upbeat letter I have ever written to you, perhaps, but it may be among the most important. Women comprise more than half of the campus community—sensational progress since the 1950s, when they were segregated by college and poorly represented among faculty and administrators—but even were women still a small minority, their safety and well being should rightly concern us all.

Thank you, then, for your consideration, your awareness, and your openness to a culture of respect of which we can all be proud.

Sincerely,

Joseph M. McShane, SJ

RESOURCES

Public Safety (Your first call in an emergency.)
Campus Assault and Relationship Education (A guide for students.)
Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance/Title IX Coordinator
Human Resources | Administrative Handbook (Pages 7 and 8 deal with sexual harassment)