"Women who have done amazing things with an idea and passion"
A panel on leadership at “Women Making Waves” features Tulane alumnae, from left, Ruthie Frierson of Citizens for 1 Greater New Orleans; Cecile Tebo, a social worker with the National Alliance on Mental Illness; Kara Van de Carr, founder of Eden House; and Virginia Saussy, a founding member of the Krewe of Muses. (Photo by Sally Asher)
It was the last panel of a day full of presentations, but a roomful of women at the “Women Making Waves” conference attentively listened to four Tulane University alumnae discuss how their work focuses on doing good in the community.
Introducing the panel, “These women are inventive, strong, cooperative, and, being Tulane University alumnae, we"re very, very smart,” said Florence D. Andre, a 1966 Newcomb College graduate who received a master"s degree in education in 1974. Andre is co-founder of nola4women, which focuses initiatives on women and girls from the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina this year to the tri-centennial celebrations of New Orleans in 2018.
Ruthie Frierson, founder of Citizens for 1 Greater New Orleans, declared Hurricane Katrina “the spark that called us to action ⦠citizens around the region were absolutely enraged, and we wanted to harness this frustration with a petition drive. We were seeing red and wanted the legislators to see red, too.”
Andre called the panelists “women who have done amazing things with an idea and passion.” She encouraged the women in the audience to embrace community service.
“Our goal was to highlight the success of our alumnae to inspire other women to pursue leadership positions in their careers and in the community,” said Nicole Bush, director of alumni career services in the Tulane Office of Alumni Relations.
“We had a mixture of undergrads and graduate students, alumnae and community members. Also, we had six students from the Women in Science student organization participating as volunteers.”
The “Women Making Waves” event held on March 21 drew more than 100 attendees.
“We want to continue having the event annually in the spring,” said Bush, a 1995 Tulane graduate. Until then, alumni can join the free Tulane Connect platform to network with fellow Tulanians, identify mentors, find jobs or internships, and advance their careers.
“Our goal was to highlight the success of our alumnae to inspire other women to pursue leadership positions in their careers and in the community.”—Nicole Bush, director of alumni career services
