Nominate a Woman for Forum Membership
Do you know an outstandingly accomplished woman with the potential to be a great addition to the Women’s Forum of New York? If you have someone in mind, Membership Committee Co-Chairs Wendy Mendenhall, MBE and Peggy Wallace encourage you to submit a nomination form through the link below. All submissions will be reviewed and considered for membership.
Although we are not gathering in person, members are able to invite potential nominees to our virtual programming. Please reach out to SuzyBrown@womensforumNY.org if you would like to extend an invitation to a Forum program to a guest.
We appreciate your assistance with identifying noteworthy candidates interested in joining the Women’s Forum of New York.
Letting Each Other Know...
Forum members Georgette Bennett, Founder, Multifaith Alliance for Syrian Refugees (MFA), Susan McPherson, Founder & CEO, McPherson Strategies and Judith Spitz, Founder & Executive Director, BreakThrough Tech were listed in Forbes “50 Over 50 Impact” list, a part of the Forbes Know Your Value Initiative series. This latest list honored 50 women who are changing their communities and the world in ways big and small through social entrepreneurship, law, advocacy and education. Our Forum members were selected from a pool of more than 10,000 nominees.
Congrats to our members who are shattering age and gender norms while making an impact on the world.
To read more on the Forbes “50 Over 50” Impact list and our Forum members who were listed, please visit HERE.
Forum members Sheri Bronstein, Chief Human Resources Officer, Bank of America and Lorraine Hariton, President & CEO, Catalyst had their article “This is a crucial first step in building a diverse, inclusive workforce” discussing the use of KPIs to measure workplace diversity published in Fortune. “We believe that diversity and inclusion are not just focused on what is right but also what is good for business.”-Sheri Bronstein & Lorraine Hariton
To read the article, please visit HERE.
Kara Medoff Barnett, Executive Director, American Ballet Theatre, is poised to step down this fall to assume a new leadership role at First Republic Bank leading social impact marketing and strategy and developing the First Republic Foundation. Barnett will continue to advise ABT, part-time through the end of the calendar year, while the Board of Governing Trustees oversees a search for her successor. She will also serve on the ABT Global Council and the ABT RISE Advisory Council, two new advisory groups launched in 2020. Kara commented “For five and a half years, ABT has inspired me to serve with unbounded energy and devotion. My admiration for my colleagues is at an all-time high as I look back on the past 17 months, and as I have watched ABT Across America engage and inspire communities nationwide.” Congrats to Kara as she embarks on this phase in her career.
To view the press release, please visit HERE.
Pamela Carlton, Founder & President, Springboard – Partners in Cross Cultural Leadership, is to serve as the newly appointed independent director on the board of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. is a real estate investment trust that primarily originates and invests in senior mortgages, mezzanine loans and other commercial real estate-related debt investments collateralized by properties throughout the United States and Europe.
To view the press release, please visit HERE.
BarbaraLee Diamonstein-Spielvogel, Chair, Historic Landmarks Preservation Center, Chair, NYC Landmarks55+ Alliance, announced the creation of a new division of the New-York Historical Society called the Diamonstein-Spielvogel Institute for New York City History, Politics, and Community Activism, a gift initiated and funded by the Diamonstein-Spielvogel Foundation to support scholarly programs, fellowships, and new archive focused on 20th and 21st Century New York City history.
To view the press release, please visit HERE.
Gloria Feldt, Founder & President, Take The Lead Leadership Parity Movement, wrote a compelling opinion piece titled Stronger Together, But How? featured in Newsweek where she discusses the intersection of racial and gender justice and what is needed to grow as a society. “Despite changes since the 1960s in laws and policies, and despite official commitment to diversity across the corporate landscape, American institutions still are biased against the talents, ideals and voices of Black people, women and the LGBTQ community, among others.” – Women’s Forum member, Gloria Feldt.
Gloria also has a new book titled Intentioning: Sex, Power, Pandemics, and How Women Will Take the Lead for (Everyone’s) Good which is being released on September 28. Pre-sales have begun at all your favorite booksellers.
To read Gloria’s opinion piece, please visit HERE.
To pre-order Gloria’s upcoming book, please visit HERE.
Joan Haffenreffer, Managing Director, CAO, Global Public Affairs, Citi, attended the 2021 Citi Open and, on behalf of Citi and the Mark and Sally Ein Foundation, presented a $50,000 donation to the Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF). The WSF was created by Forum member Billie Jean King in 1974 to provide young girls and women access to sport.
To learn more about CitiOpen, please visit HERE.
To view Citi’s tweet showcasing Joan, please visit HERE.
Jessica Porter, Lila Harnett Executive Director, ArtTable, had the opportunity to interview Judy Chicago live on PBS Books about her artwork and her new book The Flowering: The Autobiography of Judy Chicago. Judy Chicago is a trailblazing feminist known for her extraordinary and genre-defying art such as The Dinner Party, Birth Project, Holocaust Project, and more.
To view this interview, please visit HERE.
Westina Matthews Shatteen, Managing Director (Ret), Merrill Lynch, is the editor of the newly released book This Band of Sisterhood: Black Women Bishops on Race, Faith, and the Church. This book features a series of in-depth conversations that occurred throughout the tumultuous year of 2020 with the first five Black women to serve as diocesan Episcopal bishops.
To purchase Westina’s latest book, please visit HERE.
To view the promotional video, please visit HERE.
Bonita Stewart, Formerly Vice President, Global Partnerships, Google Inc., has now become the Board Partner for Gradient Ventures, Google’s venture fund focused on early stage AI companies. In her previous position in Google’s Global Partnerships team, Bonita oversaw partnerships for the largest US publishers across Media/Entertainment, News/Publishing, Mobile apps, Search and Commerce. Widely hailed for her leadership, in 2014 Crain’s named her a Woman to Watch in Tech. Ms. Stewart also pioneered the concept for Howard West, a computer science immersion program for historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), powered by Google. In her new role, Bonita will advise companies across Gradient Venture’s portfolio, help hone their go-to-market, and help with Gradient’s board practice. We would like to congratulate Bonita as she embarks on this next chapter in her career.
To learn more about Bonita’s new position with Gradient Ventures, please visit HERE.
Sheena Wright, President & CEO, United Way of New York City, is spearheading the UWNYC’s second virtual Back To School Drive which ends Friday, August 13th! UWNYC would love for any and all support to spread the word about the drive and to help them reach their goal of supporting over 2,300 students.
To learn more about the UWNYC Back to School Drive, please visit HERE.
Teresa Younger, CEO & President, Ms. Foundation, was listed in Inside Philanthropy’s very first IP Power List, showcasing the 100 most powerful players in philanthropy. Teresa was listed along with Oprah, Lebron James, Mark Zuckerburg and Rihanna, to name just a few. Nearly 50 years after its founding, the Ms. Foundation for Women remains a key player in funding for women and girls. Teresa is also involved in several leading-edge initiatives such as Grantmakers for Girls of Color.
To learn more about the IP Power List, please visit HERE.
Featured
Women in Business Wednesdays
Our #WBW interview series was born out of the same principle that is at the heart of the Women’s Forum – uplifting women. Our #WBW interviews allow women to discuss their professional journeys and provide great advice to other women looking to advance their careers and embark on the path to entrepreneurship. We have had the pleasure of interviewing Forum members- Sarah Kauss, Patrice Tanaka, Deirdre Quinn, Mijong Lee, Sarah McNally, Gina Gibney, Tracy McKibben, Rohini Dey, Lori Tauber Marcus and most recently, Susan McPherson.
View our latest #WomeninBusinessWednesday interview with Forum member Susan McPherson, Founder & CEO, McPherson Strategies through the video link below. Thank you to Forum member Nina Boone, North America Diversity & Inclusion Practice Leader, Korn Ferry for conducting such an amazing and uplifting interview!
To read our past Women in Business Wednesday Interviews, click on the links below:
- Lori Tauber Marcus, Founder of Courtyard Connections, LLC.
- Rohini Dey, Owner & Founder of Vermilion
- Tracy McKibben, Founder and CEO of MAC Energy Advisors, LLC
- Gina Gibney, Founder, CEO & Artistic Director of Gibney
- Sarah McNally: Founder & CEO of McNally Jackson
- Mijong Lee, Founder and CEO of EMMELLE Design & MIJONGLE
- Deirdre Quinn, Co-Founder and CEO of Lafayette 14
- Patrice Tanaka, Chief Joy Officer of Joyful Planet Inc
- Sarah Kauss, Founder and Executive Chairwoman of S’well
Are you or someone you know interested in sharing experiences as a business owner or entrepreneur? If you are interested in sharing your story, please email najapazant@womensforumny.org . The Women’s Forum Credo is ”Women helping other women never gets tired.” Imagine how many women in our communities, and beyond, you may help just by sharing your experience!
Head on over to Instagram to view our interviews @womensforumnewyork and like our posts.
Past Programs
We are always thankful to our outstanding members who participate in our virtual programs, keeping our community ever strong and connected especially during these times of great social challenges. In case you missed our most recent programs….
The Profession: A Conversation with Bill Bratton
On June 29th, Women’s Forum Member, CBS News Legal Analyst, Rikki Klieman, interviewed the man she knows best, former NYPD Police Commissioner, William Bratton. As Bratton’s greatest supporter and his most constructive critic, Rikki knew the hard questions to ask because she has watched Bratton’s work for years from afar and then up close for 25 years which is half of his career. After 50 years of hard work, as Bratton assesses the world today, can he still have optimism as he looks at the future of American policing? – This is at the core of his new book, The Profession.
To view the entire program, please visit HERE.
The Lost Art of Connecting
On June 1st, the Forum invited members to a conversation about how to connect in the age of technology. Susan McPherson discussed her newly published book, The Lost Art of Connecting: The Gather, Ask, Do Method for Building Meaningful Business Relationships with Forum member Faye Penn, Executive Director, women.nyc. At a time when we are more physically distant than ever before—Susan’s book tells us how can we reverse the growing trends of disconnection to forge meaningful connections in business and in life. Susan and Faye shared many great tips focused on the increasingly vital need to form and maintain our personal and professional connections. Thank you to Forum member Faye Penn for helping to present such an uplifting program.
To view the entire program, please visit HERE.
The Future of Work and LinkedIn’s Economic Graph
On May 25th, the Forum invited members to join the second program presented by Ty Heath, Director, Market Engagement, The B2B Institute @ LinkedIn. Ty presented LinkedIn’s Economic Graph – a digital representation of the global economy, highlighting the changing needs and skillsets that will be in demand in the “new normal.”
“At LinkedIn we are focused on creating economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce. New advances in tech and business are completely changing how and where we work. As global workforce challenges widen we believe our vision is more important than ever before. We are living through a fundamental transformation in the way we work. Automation and ‘thinking machines’ are replacing human tasks, changing the skills that organizations are looking for in their people. This isn’t a time to sit back and wait for events to unfold. To be prepared for the future, you must understand it”. -Ty Heath
To view the entire program, please visit HERE.
Want to Share with Us?
Please submit newsletter content before August 20th to be included in the next edition. Submissions and corresponding media/links can be submitted below, in your “My Participation” section of your member portal HERE, or you can reach out to Communications and Social Media Manager Naja Pazant at najapazant@womensforumNY.org. Also, if you’d like to share newsworthy accomplishments and updates with the IWF community, please reach out to Communications Manager Lauren Williams at lwilliams@iwforum.org.