A Conversation Series on Leadership
Join The Alumni Association of Case Western Reserve University and the Flora Stone Mather Center for Women for a series of conversations on women’s professional leadership journeys.
Alumni and guests are invited to gather for an in-depth conversation on topics that explore women’s pathways in the pursuit of leadership, the obstacles they faced along the way and the tactics that kept them moving forward.
Upcoming Events
Past Events
Alumni, students and friends are invited to join us as we celebrate Women’s History Month with Women of Wonder: Sharing HERstory. Throughout March, this multi-day series will feature alumnae leaders, innovators and champions who persevere to make history, reclaim their story and create a new living herstory.
On March 24, Heather Burton, senior director for faculty and institutional diversity, moderated our conversation with Bettye C. W. Kearse, MD, PhD (MED '79), a retired pediatrician and author of The Other Madisons: The Lost History of a President's Black Family.
Alumni, students and friends are invited to join us as we celebrate Women’s History Month with Women of Wonder: Sharing HERstory. Throughout March, this multi-day series will feature alumnae leaders, innovators and champions who persevere to make history, reclaim their story and create a new living herstory.
On March 23, Professor Burcu Gurkan, Nord Distinguished Assistant Professor, department of chemical engineering, Case School of Engineering, moderated our conversation with Debra L. Wilfong, PhD (CIT '78, GRS '82, '85, macromolecular science), retired technology vice president for BP.
In March 2021, alumni, students and friends were invited to celebrate Women’s History Month with Women of Wonder: Sharing HERstory, a multi-day series featuring alumnae leaders, innovators and champions who persevere to make history, reclaim their story and create a new living herstory.
On March 10, Justice Melody J. Stewart, PhD (SAS ‘08) is the first African-American woman elected to serve on The Supreme Court of Ohio. Our conversation was moderated by Andrea G. Porter, assistant dean of student services, Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences.
Our interactive workshop on February 1 featured CWRU alumna Kimberly Wiefling (GRS ‘86, physics), founder & president of Wiefling Consulting, Inc., who leads intensive behavior-changing “WorkShocks'' for global teams that directly translate into business results. Wiefling shared design thinking strategies to achieve career success.
Our conversation on Friday, November 6, featured Vanessa Maier, MD, MPH (CWR '97; MED '04; GRS '07, epidemiology & biostatistics), family physician, Medical Director of the MetroHealth School Health Program, and Assistant Professor of Family Medicine at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.
Maier discussed the risks she has taken throughout her career and the path that got her to where she is now. She also focused on how fear both motivates and immobilizes us.
The conversation was facilitated by Angela Clark-Taylor, PhD, Director for the Flora Stone Mather Center for Women.
Our conversation on Friday, June 5, 2020, featured Carmen Fontana (CWR '00; GRS '05 engineering), leader of Centric Consulting's Modern Software Delivery practice.
Fontana focuses on artificial intelligence, internet of things (IoT) and emerging technology. With more than twenty years of experience, her zen is when innovation meets data-driven decision making. Beyond the tech sphere, Fontana is a cancer survivor, soccer mom and donut mile champion.
The conversation was facilitated by Angela Clark-Taylor, PhD, Director for the Flora Stone Mather Center for Women.
Our conversation on Friday, January 24, featured Kari Cunningham (DEN '10, DEN ‘12), board certified pediatric dentist and owner of Panther Pediatric Dentistry.
Dr. Kari A. Cunningham is a Board Certified Pediatric Dentist and Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. She opened up a private practice called Panther Pediatric Dentistry in her hometown of Euclid, OH. In 2020, she will be expanding her practice into Lake County and providing a school-based oral health program for the children in the Willoughby-Eastlake school district.
Dr. Cunningham is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the department of Pediatric Dentistry at CWRU SODM and is the Dental Clinic Director of the new University Hospitals Rainbow Center for Women & Children in Cleveland’s Midtown. Committed to organized dentistry and advocacy, Dr. Cunningham currently serves as the President-Elect of the Greater Cleveland Dental Society and is on the Alumni Association Board of Directors for the School of Dental Medicine. When she is not practicing dentistry, Dr. Kari is recently married and enjoys traveling with her husband and spending time with family and friends. She is a certified event planner and is always thinking of a reason to celebrate!
The conversation was facilitated by Angela Clark-Taylor, PhD, Director for the Flora Stone Mather Center for Women.
Our conversation on Friday, November 15, featured Connie Hill-Johnson (WRC ‘80), President of Visiting Angels Senior Homecare.
The conversation was facilitated by Elisse Corrigan, Director, Homecoming Events and Special Programming for The Alumni Association of Case Western Reserve University.
Our conversation on Friday, October 4, featured Kathleen Buse, PhD (GRS '12, management), Director, Research and Women's Leadership Institute at ERC.
The conversation was facilitated by Angela Clark-Taylor, PhD, Director for the Flora Stone Mather Center for Women.
Our conversation on Friday, May 3, featured Gina Gibney (WRC ‘79; GRS ‘82, theater), Artistic Director and Chief Executive Officer of GIBNEY, a New York City organization that uses the transformative power of the arts to catalyze personal and social change.
The conversation was facilitated by Susan Freimark, MA, Senior Associate Director at the Flora Stone Mather Center for Women.
Our conversation on Friday, February 8, featured Dorothy C. Baunach (MGT ‘83), Chief Executive, DigitalC, a civic-tech collaboration engaging leaders to innovate in the community. Baunach is a seasoned community and business leader with broad experience in organization and community development, strategic leadership, entrepreneurship, technology commercialization, business, and early-stage capital formation.
Baunach's remarks included points about the difference between risk and opportunity, and the power of self-awareness and intuition. Baunach stated, “What I learned over time ... is that you are what your strengths and weaknesses are.” DigitalC is currently working on connecting communities in Cleveland to the internet. Watch the February session here.
The conversation was facilitated by Susan Freimark, MA, Senior Associate Director at the Flora Stone Mather Center for Women.
Our conversation on Friday, October 26, featured Melissa Yasinow (LAW '11), attorney with Kohrman, Jackson & Krantz PLL, a member of the Cleveland Heights City Council, board and committee member in the Cuyahoga Democratic Women's Caucus and the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party, and a Cleveland Magazine pick for Most Interesting People 2018. Yasinow shared her journey with alumni representing diverse backgrounds, degrees and careers.
Yasinow encouraged the audience to always consider new opportunities — “We are all amateurs when we start something new, no matter our position in life” — instead of waiting for permission to pursue their dreams.
The conversation was facilitated by Susan Freimark, MA, Senior Associate Director at the Flora Stone Mather Center for Women.