Spring 2011

The Seneca, Ink

Dear Seneca Alumnae, Family, and Friends, When I joined the Seneca as a sophomore in the fall of 2009, I had no idea that the Seneca would become such a prominent influence in my life. While there isn’t an archetypal “Seneca Woman”, all of the members I have met are passionate and leaders in their own way; and they never cease to inspire me! Bringing together such women to create a fun and supportive network is, to me, the essence of the Seneca. This year we have sought to strengthen the Seneca network by fostering more interactions between Seneca undergraduates and alumnae. In addition to introducing me to some of my closest friends who I have no doubt I will remain close with for years to come, the Seneca has also helped me find my identity and voice as a woman. The sexism that women face today is different from in the past –oftentimes it is insidious and discreet, and complacency threatens future struggles for gender equality. The Seneca has not only opened my eyes to the inequalities that still exist, but has also given me the confidence to speak up in the face of these inequalities. This year we are working to increase the solidarity and collaboration between women’s groups on campus. As more and more female social groups and student clubs spring up on campus, the atmosphere can sometimes be more competitive than supportive. By hosting social events to facilitate inter-group friendships and co-spon-soring women’s advocacy and awareness events on campus, we hope to help make Harvard’s female community more supportive and protective of each other in order to make our campus safer, and promote equal resources and opportunities for women.

We’ve been off to a great start in 2011, and I look forward to an exciting and fun-filled second half of the year! Sincerely with Sene-Love,Alexa Ing SternUndergraduate President, 2011

Table Of Contents:Announcements ....................... 1 Junior Parents’ Weekend ......... 1Career Night ..............................1Women’s Week .......................... 2Social Spaces Conversation ..... 2Seneca Social Life ..................... 3Senior Parting Words ............... 42011 Capital Campaign ........... 4

Junior Parent’s WeekendOn March 5, the Seneca organized a small afternoon recep-tion in Shabu-Ya to welcome parents of Seneca juniors visit-ing for junior parent’s weekend. Along with enjoying deli-cious food, parents were able to meet other Seneca parents and current members as well as learn more about the organi-zation.

Career NightWith the support of the Graduate Board, the Seneca hosted a Career Night for alumnae to share their experiences and advice with the undergraduate memberhsip. On April 2, 2011, the Graduate Board President, Kellee Patterson ’06, moderated a panel consisting of five alumnae: Anne Johnson ‘00, Jen Mrowka ‘02, Kristi Jobson ‘06, and Bari Schwartz ‘07. Current Seneca junior, Esther Moon, commented, “Overall, the panel was well-rounded in both the fields and personal life experiences.” Indeed, a flurry of opinions came from different viewpoints as Patterson present-ed the panel with questions about career choices, job hunting-tips and more.

Patterson, a student at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, commented, “My favorite part of career night was when Jen Mrowka shared her secret about resumes. The reac-tion from the crowd was great, and you could tell that people thought the advice was really helpful. That was the moment when I felt like we had achieved our goal for career night, which is to leverage the experiences of grads to help undergrads better position themselves and navigate careers.” Mrowka’s advice to use keywords from a job description in a resume to increase one’s chances of passing through an electronic filter is certainly helpful to those in the recruitment process.

The panelists also gave more general advice about career and lifestyle choices. Schwartz emphasized that if certain factors - be it location, weather, friends, etc. - matter to you, they are important, “If you’d be happy driving the subway in New York so long as you’re in New York, then go drive that train!”

When the panel came to a close, the ladies lingered to chat about lingering questions and common interests. Current junior, Miriam Muscarella, and Johnson discovered they had both held the role of Business Manager for the Radcliffe Pitches, and also share a mutual interest in gender-issues and medicine. Muscarella said, “It was so inspiring to get to hear Anne’s story. I feel so blessed to know that the Seneca river runs deep with experience and passion in careers like medicine and gender advocacy efforts. The panel had such a heart, and I can’t wait to meet other Sene-Alumnae!”

The evening concluded with a sense of satisfaction. Jobson – soon to be both a mother and Harvard Law School grad – said, “I loved the chance to reflect a bit on what I’ve learned in my five years since college, and I felt like I picked up some good tips from my fellow Seneca alumnae as I think about my next career steps!”

Page 1

Above: The 2010-2011 Seneca Membership

AnnouncementsUPCOMING EVENT: Seneca Summer Sync (S3) will be held on Thursday, July 21st. This is our second annual S3, and will feature simultaneous cocktail parties in cities across the globe, including Boston, NYC, San Francisco, and D.C.

SENECA NYC: This past December, NYC Seneca alumnae got together for a lovely holiday dinner at Chicca Restaurante. We hope that this will become an annual tradition. NYC alumnae also hosted a Seneca Spring Soiree cocktail party. We know that there are always new Seneca women moving to NYC, so please email Ayelet Lebovicz at lebovicz@gmail.com if you would like to be added to the email list.

REGIONAL EMAIL LISTS: There are also regional lists for Boston, D.C., and San Francisco. To sub-scribe, contact Sarah Tavel at sarah.tavel@gmail.com.

Page 2Women’s Week 2011

The Seneca partnered with the Harvard College Women’s Center again this year to sponsor a week devoted to female empowerment. Women’s Week 2011: “Stand Up, Stand Out!” attracted students of both genders in celebrating the equality of women on campus from March 6-10. Events included a film screening about the founding of the Harvard Women’s Center-- the oldest continually-operating center of its kind in the United States, a workshop on how to achieve our goals both personally and professionally, and discussions on cul-

tural perceptions of beauty and the economics of birth control.

At “Feminist Coming Out Day,” students declared their support of female equal-ity, while viewing portraits of self-declared student feminists and donning shirts saying “This is What a Feminist Looks Like.” Later in the week, students learned to defend themselves through a Rape Aggression Defense Course. Students honored Amy Wagers, Associate Professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, for The Outstanding Woman in Science Spark Award. Among Wager’s many accomplish-ments are founding a science laboratory and receiving the Burroughs Wellcom Fund Career Award in the Biomedical Science. Workshops on findingg a voice and inspiring activism through poetry and blogging rounded out the week.

The Seneca Hosts Social Spaces DiscussionThe Women’s Outreach Committee, in conjunction with Delta Gamma, organized and hosted a discussion about social spaces at Harvard. On March 29, over 50 Harvard students attended the event, completely fill-ing the Adams JCR. In hosting this event, we hoped to create a venue for students to gather and share their opinions on how female social organizations have changed the dynamics of the social scene at Harvard and the how we can confront the new challenges we face.

Students were divided into small groups to discuss some of the following key questions: the way our experi-ences at Harvard are shaped by membership or lack of membership in a social organization; whether or not social groups should be co-ed; and how female groups should address issues of finding spaces to host events in the future.

Some expressed frustration at the way Harvard’s lack of recognition of social clubs puts female groups at a greater disadvantage than the male groups, who hold envi-able real estate in Harvard Square. Many students also urged the administration to be more aware of the positive role that these female organiza-tions play in student life.

This event was one of WOC’s most successful events of the semester. Not only was the event well attended by the Seneca and Delta Gamma, but also by members of male final clubs, as well as students without any group affiliation. Dean Susan Marine, Director of the Harvard Women’s Center and Assistant Dean of the Office of Student Life, also attended the event and gained valuable insight from the students that participated. If you would like to read more about the event, please refer to the following Crimson article: http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2011/3/30/social-organizations-event-campus/

Recognizing a need to strengthen relationships between the different female social groups on campus, the Seneca organized a mixer with the Bee Club at Shabu-Ya on April 16.

Senequita Welcome Week and Welcome DinnerDuring this year’s Welcome Week, Seneca alumnae held a cocktail party exclusively for the Senequitas to give our newest members the opportu-nity to casually interact with graduate members while learning about our organization’s history. Kristi Jobson ’06 and Bari Schwartz ’07 graciously hosted the event in Bari’s apartment, welcoming the Senequitas with delicious hors d’oeuvres and dessert. They were joined by several other grads in the area, who shared

lots of interesting facts about the history of our organization, as well as entertaining stories about their time as undergraduate members.

To cap off Welcome Week we hosted a grand Welcome Dinner at Dante’s in Boston on the Friday of Harvard-Yale weekend. An unprecedented number of alumnae attended the dinner, and member-alumna pairings presented twenty-one Senequitas with Seneca necklaces. It was a night of fine wining and dining, and more importantly many exciting introductions, reunions, and lots of mingling.

Page 3Seneca Social Life

The Seneca has been busy this school year working hard, and playing hard! The year has been marked by many wonderful social events, both for the undergraduates and the larger Seneca community.

Spring RetreatOn April 9th, we spent the weekend in Rockport, MA for our annual spring retreat. Graciously hosted at the summer home of Katilin Sandor ’13, the retreat gave members the time to connect and share more about each others’ lives, while simultaneously escaping the everyday stresses of school. After a short trip on the commuter rail, members were greeted with the delicious smell of freshly baked monkey bread, brownies, and cookies upon entering the Sandors’ home. While filling up on sweets, cheese, and crackers, many members took to exploring the beautiful coastline behind

the house.

When everyone settled in, members began to check-in about recent events, future plans, and anything else they wanted to share with their fellow members. With all the hustle and bustle of school and extracurricular activities, it can sometimes to be difficult (especially for busy Sene-ladies!) to slow down and find time to devote to one another. This makes retreat a very special time and helps form lifelong supportive bonds.

Date Events and Red PartyWe ended the fall semester on a high note with “Jingle Bell Rock with the Seneca”, our +3 guests date event. It was a truly rocking night, as members and guests danced the night away to the live music of student band Third Rail in Central Square’s Middle East lounge.

This spring’s +1 date event took place in the elegant Kiki Lounge at the Estate nightclub in Boston. Members and their dates enjoyed a classy night of dancing and mingling. We re-turned to the Estate to host the annual Red Party, which was founded by the Seneca in 1999 as Harvard’s very first open party. Hundreds of ticketholders came to enjoy a night of revelry to celebrate the end of classes.

2011 Undergraduate Council

from left to right: Priya Karve (Treasurer), Gabriela San-tiago (Development Chair), Casey Thompson (Internal Chair), Liza Pincus (Women’s Outreach Committee Chair), Alexa Ing Stern (President), Katie Sylvan (Secretary), Mari-anna Verlage (Community Events Chair), Caitlin Lewis (Membership Chair), Stephanie Woo (Vice-President)

“Parting Words” from the Seneca Class of 2011

Amelia Muller will be sticking around Cambridge to work as a Harvard College admissions officer, learning what it means to live as a ‘real person’ in Boston. Anna Raginskaya will be working for J.P. Morgan and keeping it real in New York City. Davida Fernandez-Barkan is enjoying the ride. Grace Baumgartner is embracing the art of becom-ing. Kat Kim is excited about being in Paris next year!! Katie Coulson is excited to live in New York City pretending to be a grown up. Katie Ericksen will be working as an Equity Research Associate at Fidelity Investments in Boston and is very excited to be part of the Seneca community in Boston next year! Lei’La’ Bryant is a hippie fairy and will be writing a novel while living in the Ozarks. Liz McLeod doesn’t have a future biography, so she wrote a future biology. ATGCCGACCGCGATCGCGATTTA (That was her pancreas.) Nancy Lin will be work-ing in the arts world in NYC next year and would like to say farewell and thank you to all the Sene-ladies for their love and friendship and for being the most lovely, spectacular, and inspiring community of women at Har-vard! Tana Jambaldorj is off to explore new lands, but will make sure to see everyone again soon! Tess Hellgren will be dancing by the Thames River and drinking tea at Oxford! Tracy Han will be working in management consulting at the Parthenon Group in San Francisco next year. She was accepted to Harvard Business School and will return for an MBA in a couple of years. She’s excited for the adventure ahead! Wintha Kelati is doing Teach for America next year and would love to host you if you’re ever in SF! Willa Zhou will spend the summer with Ashoka UK, doing researching and learning more about Social Entrepreneurship. She plans to finish her last semester by studying abroad in Australia or Africa, and welcomes any suggestions! Yae Na Woo will miss Harvard and the Seneca but looking forward to adventures ahead. She will be volunteering in Seoul, Korea for 6 months and then heading to Paris, France to perfect her French.

Page 4

Above: The Seneca Class of 2011 before Final Dinner.

2011 Alumnae Capital CampaignWe are pleased to announce the kickoff of The Seneca, Inc.’s 2011 Alumnae Capital Campaign! This year we will be reaching out to our alumnae via email to touch base on our accomplishments and future goals for the graduate community. We will also be request-ing help in supporting our community through donations to our endowment.

Over the past few years, the endowment has been used to support our administrative expenses (accounting and legal fees) and com-munity building efforts (Career Night, Seneca Summer Sync, re-gional dinners and gatherings). This year we are excited to expand our support for community programs, including a planned panel to highlight and celebrate The Seneca’s various entrepreneurs.

The 2011 Capital Campaign will close on June 30, 2011, prior to our fiscal year end. Donations can be sent to: The Seneca, Inc., P.O. Box 381614, Cambridge, MA 02238-1614, or paid online through Google Checkout at http://www.theseneca.org/fundrais-ing/support-the-seneca.

We appreciate the continued investment of our alumnae in The Seneca’s community!