This week’s celeb is a member of the administration who loves working with students. We caught up with Dr. Abigail Lewis and asked a few questions about who she is, what she does, and where she works.
1. What is your position at Barnard College?
I am the Program Director of the Athena Scholars Program, a part of the Athena Center for Leadership Studies at Barnard College.
2. What is the Athena Scholars Program?
Using an innovative, interdisciplinary approach that combines rigorous academic and experiential study, the Athena Scholars’ program helps Barnard women prepare to assume positions of leadership at the highest levels of achievement. Scholars complete five academic courses, three leadership lab workshops, and one practicum for the program.
3. Why was it created?
The Athena Scholars Program was originally the Barnard Leadership Initiative, which was created to “prepare women for the challenges of undertaking roles as potential leaders in environments including, but not limited to, business, not-for-profit enterprise, and public service.” One of President Spar’s key initiatives was to create the Athena Center for Leadership Studies and house this program with the Center. We have done little to change the original intent of the program; rather we work to expand its mission through mentoring, fellowships, and other opportunities.
4. What is your job like on a day-to-day basis?
A majority of my time is dedicated to meeting with new and continuing students, and answering a lot of questions (usually via email). Easily, half of my week goes to speaking with students – we have over 165 scholars, and there is only one of me! In addition to doing the one-on-one advising, I oversee the Athena Mentoring program and the Athena fellowship programs. I spend a lot of time contacting participants, creating workshops, and doing outreach. As the Center continues to grow, we hope to start an entrepreneurial program for our students, so I have been doing research and talking with various entrepreneurs in the city on the best way to create a program for female students. I also supervise our interns; throughout the week I work with them on their projects – delegating work, assessing work, and making sure that they are developing their own leadership and professional skills. Then there are the other 50 random things that come up during the week, of course!
5. What is your favorite part of the job?
Getting to know the students, seeing how they evolve as they take their courses, try out new opportunities, and set new standards for themselves. I am so honored to be a witness to their triumphs and hope that I help them recover from any setbacks.
6. What do you see for the future of the program?
Right now, we want to stabilize the program in terms of numbers, so we can be more thoughtful in how we grow the program and what opportunities we can give to our Scholars. We would like to create international opportunities for our Scholars, with internships and trips, as well as create a competitive entrepreneur program. In all cases, we want to make sure the Program continues to be relevant to students and address their needs.
7. How can readers find out more about the program?
They can read more about it at http://www.barnard.edu/athenacenter.
8. If you were an animal, what would you be?
I would be a cat – independent but pampered.
9. Where’s Waldo?
In 301 Barnard Hall, of course.