Accomplished Alumnae to Share Stories And Advice With Students Next Friday

Rasha Elass ’87, a Syrian-American journalist who was one of the only reporters on the ground during the early days of the Syrian Civil War, kicks off the day with a keynote speech at Morning Meeting.

After the other alumnae introduce themselves, they will proceed to various classrooms and conference rooms to discuss the career paths they have taken and offer tips and advice on entering and succeeding in the professional world. A special academic schedule provides time for two 30-minute sessions, so students — who have already signed up to attend the workshops of their choice — will each learn from two of these wonderful alums.

 

See below for a complete list and bios of our 11 panelists. To see what else is going on during Reunion Weekend, which is expected to bring close to 150 visitors to campus, click here.

 

 

Ms. Elass is a Syrian-American journalist who recently returned to the United States after covering the Middle East for over 10 years. She was one of the only reporters on the ground during the Syrian Civil War. Although Ms. Elass's career began in finance, she transitioned into journalism because of the need for Arabic translators in the aftermath of September 11th. Ms. Elass will be our keynote speaker during Morning Meeting.

 

 

Ms. Coles graduated from Drew University in 2011, having majored in sociology and business. She currently owns and operates Springledge LLC, in The Plains, VA specializing in developing horses and riders for the show ring. Since moving into the professional ranks, Sloane has competed in major North American grand prix events with wins at The Hampton Classic (New York), HITS-on-the-Hudson (New York) and HITS Culpeper (Virginia). She was named to the 2010 USEF Developing Rider Show Jumping tour with her mare, Louisiana.

 

Ms. Lloyd is the owner and manager of The Bartlett Pear Inn, an historic inn and fine dining establishment in Easton, MD.  A labor of love for Alice and her husband, Jordan, Bartlett Pear strives to bring food from "dirt to table" everyday. In 2014, The Bartlett Pear Inn made the list of Washingtonian magazine’s Top 25 Restaurants and has also acquired a national reputation from Open Table, ranking among the Top 100 American Fare Restaurants in the Country.

 

Ms. Mosher has taught in Loudoun County Public Schools for the past 16 years. Eight of those years have been spent as a teacher of students with autism. This past year, Ms. Mosher is one of the finalists to be nominated for Shenandoah University Teacher of the Year. Ms. Mosher also serves as a teacher consultant for the Northern Virginia Writing Project and sits on the board for Project Write, a non-profit that “offers a variety of programs designed to connect young writers, parents, students, professional writers, university faculty, and the community-at-large” in the Shenandoah Valley.

 

Ms. Lecesne is a leadership and life coach who created the high impact, 8-step Live Your Brilliance™ Leadership & Lifestyle Framework that positively impacts the lives of working women, supporting them from where they are today into being their best selves. Ms. Lecesne has integrated over 10,000 hours of dedicated study of human development disciplines and her expertise as a master teacher to build a program to support women and their goals.

 

 

Dr. Kelly, M.D., F.A.A.P. graduated cum laude from Harvard University with a degree in Government. She then received her medical degree from Case Western Reserve School of Medicine in Cleveland, OH and completed her training at Georgetown University Hospital, where she served an additional year as Chief Resident in Pediatrics. Dr. Kelly joined Northern Virginia Pediatric Associates in 2005 and has been recognized as a top pediatrician by the Consumers’ Research Council.

 

Mrs. Rosile is a graduate of MIT, and is now a software engineer for Google. Before Google, Mrs. Rosile worked at Comverge, a leading provider of energy management solutions, where she worked on improving the test suite by developing an automated end-to-end test suite. Mrs. Rosile’s other passion is animals, specifically cat rescues, and she works as the Director of Case Management at Diabetic Cats in Need in Denver, CO.  

 

 

Ms. Collins is the Director of Strategic Communications at Northrop Grumman, a leading global security company specializing in aerospace and defense technology. Ms. Collins is responsible for building the structure and rhythm of this new organization and for developing strategies and tactics to establish brand presence and messaging to support global business. Ms. Collins has also worked as a political appointee at the White House and U.S. Department of Education where she coordinated activities and media at domestic and international events for the President, Vice President, First Lady of the United States, Cabinet officials, and the   White House Press Corps.

 

Ms. Harris currently works as a law clerk for Thompson & Horton, LLP, a leading education firm in the state of Texas, and is studying for the bar exam. Before moving to Houston, Ms. Harris was specially admitted to the Bar after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in Orleans and Jefferson Parishes, Louisiana to perform client intake and outreach, prepare and draft motions, subpoenas and memoranda for trial, witness preparation, as well as to litigate under supervision for civil matters including child support and custody, divorce, and curatorship.

 

Mrs. Bowditch earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Denison University and her Post Baccalaureate Certificate and Master of Fine Arts degree from Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Mrs. Bowditch’s work has been exhibited nationally and featured in various publications. Her pieces can be found in private collections throughout the United States and abroad. She currently teaches drawing and painting at Howard Community College in Columbia, Maryland.

 

Ms. Boyd lives in Atlanta, GA where she is a commercial pilot for Delta Airlines. As one of the 5% of women pilots with major and regional airlines, Ms. Boyd is a force within her field. In 2013, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recognized Ms. Boyd with inclusion in the prestigious FAA Airmen Certification Database — which recognizes pilots who have met or exceeded the high educational, licensing, and medical standards of the FAA.