Conference

2026: She Opened the Door  

Coming Soon!

2024: She Opened the Door to Health — Empowering Women to Lead Healthy Lives

📅 Date: March 2, 2024
 📍 Location: Faculty House

Keynote

  • Delphine O’Rourke ’01LAW

Longevity — Planning for a Healthy Lifespan

  • Dr. Linda Fried — Dean, Columbia Mailman School of Public Health; Director, Butler Columbia Aging Center
  • Dr. Nour Makarem — Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health
  • Risa Starr ’92BUS, ’20PH — Executive Director, Longevity Biotechnology Association & The Academy for Health and Lifespan Research

Optimizing Reproductive Health, Preserving Fertility, and Planning for a Family

  • Hope Yates, JD, MPH, ’14MSPH — Chief Strategy Officer, Women's Health, Columbia Ob/Gyn
  • Dr. Chetna Arora
  • Dr. Paula Brady ’11VPS
  • Dr. Catherine Monk ’86BC — Diana Vagelos Professor of Women’s Mental Health, Columbia Ob/Gyn & Psychiatry

Reproductive Health Justice and Equity

  • Dr. Jae Sevelius — Clinical Psychologist and Behavioral Health Researcher
  • Dr. Julia Iyasere ’08BUS, ’08VPS — SVP for Health Justice & Equity, NYP; Executive Director, Dalio Center for Health Justice
  • Katherine Brewster ’71BC, ’78BUS — Founder, Somatic Wellness Practice; President, BC Voices, Inc.

Exploring Well-being at Every Stage

  • Dr. Lorraine Frazier — Dean, Columbia School of Nursing
  • Dr. Tia Dole ’02TC — Chief 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline Officer, Vibrant Emotional Health
  • Dr. Judith Joseph ’07BUS, ’07VPS — Psychiatrist; Chair, Women in Medicine Initiative at Columbia VPS

She Opened the Door Co-chairs

  • Francine Glick ’77BC
  • Ana Rodriguez ’86SEAS, ’88SEAS

2022: She Opened the Door to Entrepreneurship

📅 Date: April 30, 2022
 📍 Location: Faculty House

Keynote

  • Barbara Roberts — Entrepreneur in Residence, Columbia Business School & Hofstra University

Deciding on the Next Investment

  • Laura Sachar ’84BC, ’91BUS — Co-Founder and Managing Partner, StarVest Partners

How to Turn Your Vision into a Thriving Business

  • Yael Alkalay ’97BUS — VP, Head of UX Design
  • Taly Matiteyahu ’15LAW — Founder, TreatTeek

Making the Pitch

  • Zontee Hou ’14SPS — President & Founder, Media Volery LLC
  • Joy Fairbanks ’94BUS | Adjunct Assistant Professor at Columbia Business School — Founder and Managing Principal, Fairbanks Venture Advisors

Gaffes to Avoid

  • Monica Murphy 
  • Amy Lin ’16BUS — Founder, Sundays Studio
  • Carmen Ferreyra ’10GS, ’14GSAS — Founding Partner, Porteñas

She Opened the Door Co-chairs

  • Francine Glick ’77BC
  • Ana Rodriguez ’86SEAS, ’88SEAS

2020: She Opened the Door — Celebrating 100 Years Since the 19th Amendment

📅 Date: February 9, 2020
 📍 Location: Alfred Lerner Hall

Conference Theme:

A centennial tribute to the 19th Amendment, bringing together Columbia alumnae and students to honor women's progress, leadership, and civic engagement.

Breakfast Keynote

  • Leymah Gbowee — Nobel Peace Laureate
  • Prof. Erika Kitzmiller — Barnard College, Teachers College Faculty

Personal Journeys Through the Arts

  • Denise Murrell GSAS’04, ’10, ’14 — Faculty
  • Maureen Ryan SOA’92 — Faculty
  • Rita Pietropinto-Kitt CC’93, SOA’96 — Moderator

Personal Journeys Through Social Justice

  • Rebekah Boyd VPS’22
  • Tanya Domi GSAS’07, SIPA Faculty
  • Elora Mukherjee Law Faculty
  • June Cross JRN Faculty — Moderator

Lessons in Leadership: Stories from Alumnae Innovators and Trailblazers

  • Esta Stecher LAW’82 — Columbia Trustee
  • Khadijah Sharif-Drinkard CC’93
  • Shazi Visram CC’99, BUS’04
    Marie Wieck SEAS’83
    Shartia Brantley JRN’07 — Moderator

Lunch & Keynote Panel: Breaking Barriers and Global Awareness

  • Lisa Carnoy ‘CC89, Trustee
  • Christiane Amanpour P: ’23CC — CNN Chief International Anchor
  • Poppy Harlow ’05CC — CNN Anchor
  • Letitia James — New York State Attorney General, SIPA alum

Women in Politics: Running for Office

  • Julie Menin CC’89 — Moderator
  • Mathylde Frontus SW’07, ’15
  • Anne-Marie Lampropoulos Wright CC’89, JRN’91

Women in the World Today

  • Alice Albright SIPA’85
  • Jennifer Dohrn NRS’85, ’05 — Faculty
  • Sara Ziff GS’11
  • Carla Zanoni GS’05, JRN’06 — Moderator
  • Lisa Rosen-Metsch GS’90, Dean of GS — Introducer

Journalism: Through a Woman’s Lens

  • Laila Al-Arian JRN’06
  • Jodi Kantor CC’96
  • Maryam Banikarim BC’89, BUS’93, SIPA’93 — Moderator

She Opened the Door Co-chairs

  • Francine Glick ’77BC
  • Ana Rodriguez ’86SEAS, ’88SEAS

2018: She Opened the Door — The First University-Wide Women’s Conference

📅 Dates: February 9–11, 2018
 📍 Location: Alfred Lerner Hall

Keynote Conversations

  • Poppy Harlow ’05CC in conversation with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg ’59LAW
  • A’Lelia Bundles ’76JRN with Sallie Krawcheck ’92BUS — CEO & Co-Founder, Ellevest
  • Faye Wattleton ’67NRS — Former President & CEO, Planned Parenthood
  • Abigail Disney ’87GSAS, ’94GSAS — CEO, Fork Films

Culture as Resistance

  • Roxana Geffen ’95CC
  • Sheila Nevins ’60BC
  • Mabel Wilson ’91GSAPP
  • Christina Macchiarola ’10CC, ’13SOA

Mental Health and Education

  • Sian Beilock — President, Barnard
  • Prof. Anne Marie Albano

Building 21st Century Businesses

  • Elizabeth Ferdon ’05CC
  • Danielle Lee ’97CC, ’04BUS
  • Anushka Salinas ’10BUS
  • Rachel Webber ’04BC
  • Danielle Maged ’89CC, ’97BUS

Faculty Research Impacting Women

  • Geraldine Downey
  • Ana Paulina Lee
  • Anupama Rao
  • Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic
  • Moderator: Lisa Rosen-Metsch ’90GS

Women in Politics and Power

  • Karine Jean-Pierre ’03SIPA
  • Athena Jones ’99JRN
  • Brette McSweeney ’04SIPA
  • Hannah Rosenzweig ’05PH

She Opened the Door Co-chairs

  • Kathleen Crowley '91PH, '13PH 
  • Teresa M. Saputo-Crerend '87CC, '92BUS