WLC News and Updates

During Colgate’s Arts, Creativity, and Innovation Weekend in April, the WLC and friends of the WLC gathered for a brunch to honor former president Rebecca Chopp.

This year, members of the WLC developed several important new initiatives. Each of these initiatives is designed to create more meaningful engagement within the WLC and inspire greater philanthropy across the Colgate community. Many of these efforts are still in development and will be launched in the year ahead. Exciting initiatives include a virtual WLC hub, enhanced member directory, and engagement with students and recent alumni.

I met my best friend, Sonya Lee Chung ’85, P’21, on the first day of our freshman year in the fall of 1981, a veritable lifetime ago.

I recently had the pleasure of catching up with Liz Hartman ’80, P’10. We discussed her involvement with WLC, Colgate, her generous philanthropy and passion for the arts, especially in the context of the arts, creativity, and innovation initiative in the Third-Century Plan. Our conversation left me inspired and wishing we’d spent a lot more time together during our years at Colgate.

As a senior at Colgate, Bryn Luedde was the recipient of the Alumnae Leadership Scholarship, which was established in 2005 by members of the Women’s Leadership Council. The scholarship provides support to students with strong academic records and excellent leadership experience and skills.

As part of Colgate's WLC she has been particularly focused on ways to involve younger alumnae in the organization. She has enjoyed the many events hosted by the WLC, especially the talk given by international human rights attorney, Amal Clooney, during Colgate's 50th Anniversary of Coeducation in 2022.

When approached by a Colgate Advancement officer about a Reunion gift, Martha Rose, Class of 2007, generously offered to establish a scholarship in her family’s name and join the Women’s Leadership Council. Helping to increase access to undergraduate education, the “first place you think about being an adult,” fit well with Rose’s education-focused philanthropic priorities.

As a Colgate Alumni Memorial Scholar, I was blessed to receive a financial aid package that enabled my family to afford to send me to college.

Colgate has a special place in my family. Both of my parents (Robert Chamberlain ’74 and Rita Everts Chamberlain ’75) went to Colgate, and I met my husband (Tal-ee Roberts ’01) at the University.