KICKING OFF A HEALTHY HOLIDAY SEASON!

Alumnae Committee Co-chair Corner

Welcome to the sixth issue of the SisterMentors Alumnae Association Quarterly Newsletter!  This newsletter serves as a space where we can uplift each other while continuing to grow our powerful sisterhood.  We are unique in that we are a gathering place for Black and Brown women doctorates and college graduates to dialogue with each other.  

We hope you are encouraged to continue the legacy we have built together with SisterMentors by reaching out to a fellow SisterMentors alumna or your mentee to see how they are doing, attending one of our upcoming programs, and listening to the SisterMentors podcasts. We also encourage you to consider a donation to SisterMentors as the year draws to a close.  The goal is to increase members of our Dream Builders Society and raise at least $25,000 from our alumnae.  These funds are to help with the services we provide to our women and girls including college visits and writing retreats. Additionally, SisterMentors has established the Fierce Future Fund (FFF) with a goal of raising 25 gifts of $25,000 each as a reserve fund to sustain SisterMentors for many years to come. Please contact Dr. Lewis at director@sistermentors.org, if interested in being a part of this lasting legacy.

Words from Our Founder

Happy holidays to you and your family as we wrap up another year of SisterMentors and plan for the new year.  Our accomplishments this year include a college visit to Howard University where our girls met with the President and Provost, a return to our in-person Social Skills and Leadership Workshop at the Jefferson Hotel, a presentation by a Black woman professor on misogynoir, our young women getting free and almost free rides to college and so much more.  

 

Special thanks to Emilie Boone, one of our doctorates, who graciously took time out of her busy schedule to talk with our current doctoral students about her dissertation journey, the impact of SisterMentors and about her experience in the academy as a tenure track professor. Emilie published her first book this year titled, A Nimble Arc: James Van Der Zee and Photography. It has been a wonderful year for SisterMentors as we continue to increase the number of girls of color going to college and the number of women of color earning doctoral degrees. I wish you all the best as the year draws to a close and another year begins.  Thank you for your support of SisterMentors!

Our Latest Ph.D.

Alisa received her Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in Biomedical Engineering from Northwestern University.  Her research then involved HIV prevention using PrEP based implants.  She is involved in the National Society of Black Engineers and is also a National GEM Consortium fellow.  One of her goals is to give black students more access to resources in order to study and succeed in Engineering.

 

Alisa’s dissertation is titled: Deep Learning-Reinforced Engineering of Islets with Micro and Nano Biomaterials for Type 1 Diabetes Treatment.  Here’s a summary of her research: An estimated 1.6 million Americans live with type 1 diabetes (T1D).  The most common treatment method involves daily blood glucose monitoring and insulin injections, which can negatively impact quality of life and lead to severe health complications.  Whole pancreatic transplantation, a more permanent treatment option, entails invasive surgery with associated risks and a high morbidity rate.  Furthermore, lifelong immunosuppressant use, which can be detrimental to health, is necessary for transplant recipients.  

 

Islet transplantation has emerged as a promising alternative for T1D treatment, offering a less invasive approach, though it still requires the use of immunosuppressants to prevent graft rejection.  Alisa’s work focuses on addressing the challenges mentioned above by enhancing islet encapsulation methods through a deep learning-based on-chip detection and sorting system, enabling the creation of highly pure samples of islet-laden core-shell hydrogel microcapsules that mimic the structure and microenvironment of the pancreas.

News from Our Alumnae

In May 2023, Gloria Aboyage earned joint degrees — a doctorate in Pharmacy and an MBA both from Cedarville University in Ohio.  She recently received her license to practice as a Pharmacist. Gloria started SisterMentors in middle school and is the second SisterMentors mentee to earn her doctorate. Congrats, Gloria.  

 

Margie Obeng received her Master’s degree in Global Equity from American University in 2022.   She recently left her job of five years and is now seeking employment.  Here’s what she is looking for: preferably a fully remote position with full benefits in the areas of philanthropy, non-profit sector, education, or IT. Margie has a background deeply rooted in DEIJ, education, philanthropic practice, and intercultural competence.  Please let Dr. Lewis know of any open positions for Margie.  

Latest & Greatest

We want to send a big thank you to everyone who attended our annual fundraiser on September 14, 2023.  We appreciate your support!  

 

On Sunday, January 14, 2024, at 2pm ET, SisterMentors will be hosting a virtual book talk featuring alumna Jennifer Bacon, Ph.D., author of These Black Kids: Culturally Responsive Poetry and The Lived Experience of African American Adolescent Girls, as well as children’s book I Am an Antiracist Superhero!  Save the date for a riveting conversation with the author, and keep an eye out for the RSVP link.  

 

On Sunday, February 11, 2024, at 2pm ET, SisterMentors will hold a virtual wellness talk with Sandra McLanahan, M.D., an integrative medicine practitioner with Satchidananda Ashram, Yogaville.  She will walk us through healthy living tips for the new year, from mindfulness to nutrition. Look out for the RSVP in the new year!  We hope to see you there.

 

Mark your calendars! On Saturday, June 8, 2024, at 11am to 12 noon in downtown Washington, D.C., SisterMentors will host a convening for current women and alumnae.  This is your chance to meet current SisterMentors women and to see peers who you may not have seen in years!  More details to come.  

 

Feature Talk: Theza Argueta, First Year College Student

 

I currently attend The Catholic University of America in Washington D.C. I am from El Salvador.  In my country there is a lot of poverty and very little opportunity for education.  My parents were not able to attend college due to lack of opportunities.  My parents are immigrants who came to the United States with the desire and willingness to work while also looking to have a better life.  My parents came here with the hope of giving me and my brother better opportunities.

 

 

I was 12 years old when I arrived in the United States.  Learning a new language was a struggle and a sense of feeling isolated.  When I found myself not being able to communicate or understand the content of my classes, it was very hard for me.  As a new immigrant, I felt stressed, anxious, and sometimes a bit lonely.  Everything was so new and I had to start a new life from scratch.  When I was able to understand English, I had to start translating for my parents.  

 

 

There are many opportunities for high school immigrants in D.C. to attend college.  The key is to have a strong relationship with different people who can help.  I joined SisterMentors because my school counselor suggested it.  My high school, Calvin Coolidge High School, has a special arrangement with SisterMentors.

 

 

SisterMentors has helped me a lot.  Throughout high school, my mentor, Ms. Danielle, helped me with my personal and academic goals.  She also encouraged me to take AP classes to prepare me for college.  I remember that when I was in high school, I started working close to 36 hours a week to help my mother financially, because she had lost her job at the start of Covid.  But unfortunately, I started noticing as well that I was no longer doing well in my classes.  I thank SisterMentors for stepping in so I could focus on school because preparing for college was more important.

 

SisterMentors also has helped and currently still helps me to take online classes to improve my English grammar.  Being a first generation student, it is difficult to understand the college application process and the financial aid packages from different universities.  SisterMentors helped me prepare ahead of time.  My mentor, Ms. Danielle, helped me to apply to colleges before the deadlines.  Ms. Danielle spent many hours, even on weekends, helping me with my personal and supplemental essays and explaining to me how to understand my financial aid packages.  

 

 

Now that I am in my first year of college at Catholic University, I am majoring in Architecture.  I chose Architecture because I remember seeing my father create plans for building houses when I was a child.  My goal as an Architect is to create buildings that are sustainable and safe for the environment. That’s why I  have decided to declare a minor in sustainability next year.

 

Recent Podcasts: Episode 10, Shoji Malone; Episode 9, Bathsheba F. Bryant-Tarpeh & Ruth Solomon

SisterMentors is continuing its series of alumnae interviews on our podcast!  Every alumna we interview talks about significant aspects of her education journey and the impact of SisterMentors on her life.  

 

Our most recent podcast episode features Shoji Malone, Ph.D., who teaches African American and African Diaspora Studies, as she tells her story of finding SisterMentors when she needed us most. In another recent episode, Bathsheba Bryant-Tarpeh, Ph.D. and Ruth Solomon talk about their mentor-mentee relationship and their journey together with SisterMentors.

Quote of the Quarter

“All of us have a conscience that whispers to us, sometimes in the dark.  The mandates of conscience that arise within each of us arise not out of loyalty to abstract principles or doctrines but from a place of deep knowing — a deep knowing that we owe something to each other as human beings, that we belong to each other, and that our freedom and liberation depend on one another.”

 

Job Postings!

We are hiring!  We are seeking to fill several new positions to further our ongoing sustainability initiatives.

 

• Social Media Consultant: Primary responsibility is to develop and implement a social media plan and manage all aspects of the organization’s social media platforms.

• Community Engagement Manager: Full time.  Responsibilities include managing a team of volunteers to help with outreach to the community and implementing major initiatives.

We are recruiting…

Do you know of any women of color (Black, Latina, Asian, Muslim, Indigenous) working on a doctorate? Would they like to be part of a community of sister scholars helping each other to make progress on earning their degree? Would they also like to be a role model and mentor for a young girl of color? Do they live in the Washington, D.C. area? If so, SisterMentors is for them.

 

Ask interested women to email Dr. Shireen Lewis at director@sistermentors.org.