Aquinas-Landmark-Winter-2021

The Sisters of St. Joseph Women’s Leadership Program at Aquinas is thriving! This school year, there are 52 members in grades 10 – 12 involved in the group, which is a record number of participants. The young women meet twice per month along with a women’s leadership advisor to work on skills such as public speaking, goal setting, addressing concerns, and building confidence and community. One of the meetings is dedicated to having an AQ alumna attend in person and share with the students her journey from graduating to where she is today. This is a new format for the program this year and proving to be worthwhile. “We really wanted to focus on connecting our current students with Aquinas alumnae in the community to share their experience and to begin their networking journey this year,” said Julie Melton, Director of the Sisters of St. Joseph Women’s Leadership Program. “Providing exposure to our students allows them to witness the tangible possibilities after they leave Aquinas and allows them to establish a networking community as they grow and evolve. We look forward to witnessing these connections blossom.” Senior Sammie Brescia, who has been a member of the SSJ Women’s Leadership Program since her sophomore year says she has really enjoyed having the alumnae come to speak to the group. “I like hearing that these women are still connected to the friends they made back in high school and how they’ve used their Aquinas connections to help them professionally, it’s been very insightful.” Those who complete at least two years in the program receive a special cord and a certificate of completion at graduation. Alumnae Speaker Series Enlivens SSJ Women’s Leadership Program In late spring, OwenMowry was named the winner of Aquinas’ Think Big Entrepreneurship Competition sponsored by alumnus Aaron Rallo ’91. Winners of the annual competition are awarded scholarships toward the following year’s tuition. To compete, students need to identify a customer problem and propose a solution by either creating a new product or a way to make an existing product better. Owen’s winning idea to create an all-organic compost made from food waste in restaurants, was born out of his own experience in food service. “After working in restaurants and witnessing the great extent of the misuse of food waste, I’m inspired to put an end to this wasteful and harmful problem,” said Owen in his final presentation. “Through my company, EcoCare Fertilizer, and it’s process to revitalize the restaurant’s food waste into sellable compost, we can experience healthier soil, healthier wallets, but most importantly, a healthier planet.” All students who participated were paired up with alumni mentors to refine their ideas and build a pitch, that was then virtually presented to a panel of alumni and faculty judges. This year’s panel included Aaron Rallo ‘91, BrianWebber ‘88, Mark DiRaddo ‘96, Jay Polston ‘90, Lisa Martone ‘97, and Aquinas business teacher Steven Skidmore. In his closing remarks Owen said, “Thank you for this wonderful opportunity. I’ve learned a lot more than I anticipated about business and proposals in general. I appreciate all of the feedback given to me in the preliminary presentations and the final presentation today.” Congratulations, Owen! Mowry ’22 Wins “Think Big” Competition 14 AQUINAS LANDMARK | WINTER 2021 Meagan Baker ’00 and Kristin Lindley ’00, owners of Upstate Roots Design, speak to members of Women’s Leadership about their professional experience. AQ Alumnae Lineup Nicole (D’Ettore) McEntee ’00, Director of Strategic Accounts NE Region, Essilor of America Kristin (Weilert) Lindley ’00 & Meagan (Branagan) Baker ’00, Co-Founders & Designers, Upstate Roots Design Stephanie Happ ’99, Senior Recruiter, BetterUp Dr. Megan Callanan-Lasopanara ’01, Pediatrician, Executive Director, Kids Thrive 585 Nicole Bini ’12, Attorney Betsy (Murty) Dell ’84, Director, AdvanceRIT & Senior Faculty Associate, Rochester Institute of Technology