On March 25th, Her Campus at Ithaca hosted a panel event in Textor, honoring the women of all five schools, each one represented by a panelist.
A photo taken from Her Campus’ First Women’s History Month Panel — last year.
The event became part of the club’s Women’s History Month initiative, where previous events have involved exclusive articles and a collaborative celebration with the Women In Communications club. PR and Marketing Director Maddie Schnitzlein carrying the event alongside the dedicated executive team — hosted a panel containing the likes of Carly Dixon, Sierra Gabriel, Ruby Kiesewalter, Shana Desir, and Aysia Louis. Several of the panelists had taken on majors in fields that were typically male-dominated, such as sports media/management, accounting, and exercise science. With representation from the classes of 2026, 2027, and 2028, Schnitzlein implored their advice and experiences as women in leadership fields.
The discussion began with the question of each individual woman’s motivation for leadership. Aysia Louis, a senior occupational therapy major and president of Sister2Sister, admitted that her calling to leadership stemmed from a greater connection to her culture. Coming to Ithaca as someone who had initially planned on attending an HBCU, Louis was searching for a sense of belonging as a woman of color. She hopes that her involvement in Sister2Sister as well as the HSHP Students of Color Association which she co-founded will create a safe place for girls who feel like she once did. Additionally, panelists Dickson and Desir spoke of how their respective Greek organizations inspired their leadership qualities. Desir, who serves as a member in Zeta Phi Beta spoke of how it fostered greater connection to her community; meanwhile, Dickson highlighted her involvement in the business school’s honor fraternity, Beta Alpha Psi, where she currently serves as chapter president. She mentioned being approached by its previous president as a freshman, and how climbing the ladder in this organization expanded her confidence as well as her workplace skills. Following this, the five were questioned about the impact that their involvement in all their organizations had upon their lives. Ruby Keisewalter, founder of IC Young Feminists, shared that her involvement in female-dominated clubs on campus became a comforting, familial space in her life. An avid member of the dance company IC Unbound, Kiesewalter finds empowerment as well as mentorship alongside her peers. Similarly, Sierra Gabriel emphasized how her different communities served her, allowing for her time at Ithaca to highlight her career as well as her religious identity.
The panel did not shy away from the harder realities of women in leadership. Several panelists named imposter syndrome as something they actively fight, with the reminder that “I’m here for a reason” becoming a mantra of sorts. Gabriel spoke to a challenge specific to her field — the extra time required for lighting adjustments for darker skin tones on ICTV’s set, a small, yet isolating experience in an industry that still has a long way to go. Others noted that pressure women face to soften their communication, adding exclamation points to emails, managing how they’re perceived, a tax that their male counterparts don’t pay. For panelists of color in predominantly white spaces, the stakes felt even higher with the fear of being labeled “the angry Black woman” for simply holding a standard of excellence.
When asked about moments of genuine empowerment, Louis pointed to Sister2Sister’s annual Lotus Banquet, whose theme of “Reclamation” hit differently amid the current climate around DEI initiatives. Gabriel recalled not getting the Sports Final co-anchor role the first time around and choosing to reframe it as a growing season rather than a closed door. The persistence paid off. Kiesewalter cited the very first IC Young Feminists e-board meeting as her moment, realizing she had built something from scratch with people who shared her vision.
The panel closed on balance and sustainability, a fitting note for women who are doing a lot. The consensus wasn’t to do less, but to be intentional. Color-coded calendars, protected sleep, scheduled friend time, and the radical act of saying no. Louis put it plainly: “rest isn’t laziness, it’s a reset.” Probably most memorably, she pushed back against comparison culture entirely. Your three clubs are not lesser than someone else’s five. As Louis states, “Comparison is the thief of balance. You’re doing what matters and you don’t have to be equal to other people.” Everyone has a different capacity, and leadership is about impact, not volume.
As Women’s History Month draws to a close, the message from Textor that night with Her Campus Ithaca was that the next generation of women leaders isn’t waiting to be handed anything — they’re already building.