Turning 20! - Alumni - Cornell University
Turning 20! - Alumni - Cornell University
Turning 20! - Alumni - Cornell University
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Does my first job out of school have to be the perfect job Should<br />
I work for a few years before I go to law or business school<br />
What is the right job if you want to have a family How can I ask<br />
for career help from someone even if they don’t have a job opening<br />
Over the last two decades, questions like these have echoed<br />
through the Statler Ballroom, corporate offices and alumnae homes<br />
across the country during numerous PCCW student mentoring and<br />
networking activities. Reflecting on PCCW from her perspective,<br />
Vice President for Student and Academic Services, Susan Murphy,<br />
noted that PCCW “networking opportunities have been one of our<br />
biggest impacts.”<br />
Since its inception in 1990, PCCW has actively pursued<br />
opportunities to enhance the <strong>Cornell</strong> student experience and<br />
support the <strong>University</strong>’s student programs in numerous ways. We<br />
formed early and strong connections with Vice President Susan<br />
Murphy, who has provided PCCW with insight on current issues<br />
facing students, projects to support and prospects for collaboration.<br />
Led by the Student Life Committee (now Mentoring), PCCW<br />
initially focused its efforts on the <strong>University</strong>’s student-focused and<br />
student-led organizations. Those efforts have since expanded to<br />
initiatives with more direct student engagement and impact.<br />
PCCW’s networking and mentoring initiatives have focused on<br />
three primary areas:<br />
3 STUDENTS<br />
Helping Students: An Expanding Two-Way Street<br />
“aha!” moment about the perils of sharing too much information<br />
on Facebook, our members have a wealth of experience and<br />
perspective to share with students.<br />
And the benefit is mutual. Engagement with students also<br />
enables PCCW members to reconnect with <strong>Cornell</strong> in a personal<br />
way. As the <strong>University</strong> has grown and changed since we all<br />
graduated, these interactions offer a window into campus life<br />
that only a student conversation can provide. For some PCCW<br />
members, an internship or lunchtime conversation has evolved<br />
into a long-term connection, with advice and networking shared<br />
both ways. Nancy Mills PCCW 1995, remains connected to an<br />
undergraduate she met at an annual networking lunch and who<br />
she helped find a job in journalism. Several years later, “the tables<br />
were turned” when the young journalist interviewed Nancy and<br />
her son Kevin as they were promoting their latest cookbook.<br />
Given the numbers of <strong>Cornell</strong> students looking for mentors<br />
and networking opportunities, the time and energy we contribute<br />
toward these student life initiatives remain vital. Emphasizing this<br />
aspect, VP Susan Murphy added in an interview: “I would love to<br />
have every PCCW member . . . involved somehow with the career support<br />
for our students.”<br />
As PCCW moves into its third decade, student engagement<br />
continues to be a top priority, while we explore new ways to enable<br />
these interactions. Whether on campus, via computer or in our<br />
living rooms, our role in supporting students is a two-way street<br />
that benefits the <strong>University</strong> and <strong>Cornell</strong> women in multiple ways.<br />
Below are just two examples of using PCCW grants to benefit<br />
students. More are described in the Development/Grants section.<br />
In <strong>20</strong>05-06 PCCWs Leadership Fund provided a $15,000<br />
Women’s Health Grant for <strong>Cornell</strong>’s “Smart Women: Reduction<br />
of High Risk Drinking” campaign, an issue that concerned our<br />
members.<br />
In <strong>20</strong>08-<strong>20</strong>09 a $5,000 Leadership grant went to the Public<br />
Service Center (PSC) for projects initiated by women. Participant<br />
Kristin Kennedy ’10 valued the PSC for “experiences you can’t get<br />
out of a textbook,” and her new perspective on social justice issues<br />
from her project in Costa Rica. She added, “Thank you PCCW.<br />
You’ve reached a lot of women through the Public Service Center.”<br />
• Each spring at our annual meeting in Ithaca, PCCW hosts a<br />
networking lunch with junior and senior undergraduates. The<br />
lunch offers students an opportunity for informal discussion<br />
with PCCW members over lunch, followed by an open reception<br />
networking guided by career-choices and professions. The<br />
Student Life Committee recently expanded our reach to include<br />
panel discussions and a networking event for graduate students<br />
in the Johnson School of Business and the Law School.<br />
by Joy Higa PCCW <strong>20</strong>00<br />
past Chair, Student Life Committee<br />
• For more than a decade, PCCW members have been instrumental<br />
in opening their homes to junior and senior undergraduates<br />
for regional networking brunches and dinners during<br />
<strong>Cornell</strong>’s winter break. These sessions – organized through the<br />
<strong>University</strong>’s Career Services Center – bring together local PCCW<br />
members with students in their hometowns, and offer informal<br />
interactions focused largely on getting started professionally<br />
and personally after graduation.<br />
• PCCW has likely achieved its broadest student reach through<br />
members’ one-on-one mentoring and networking with<br />
students. Our members actively participate in the FRESH and<br />
Extern programs, which offer students an opportunity to experience<br />
a “day on the job” hosted by a <strong>Cornell</strong>ian. Many of us also<br />
offer our time and advice through career contact networks and<br />
the <strong>Cornell</strong> <strong>Alumni</strong> Student Mentoring Program.<br />
PCCW has touched thousands of students through these<br />
initiatives over its <strong>20</strong>-year history. Whether a lunchtime<br />
conversation produces another networking contact, a job lead or an<br />
Dear PCCW Members:<br />
Thank you so much for the (mentoring) luncheon Saturday. It is<br />
inspiring to women starting in the work force today to hear your<br />
stories, advice and opinions. It is also incredibly heartening to<br />
see such strong, amazing women helping other women to be as<br />
strong and successful. Excellent job! I look forward to next year’s<br />
luncheon.<br />
Sincerely,<br />
Kelly DeNardo ’98 March 21, 1997