Women and Philanthropy = Women in Leadership

Group Was Started Two Years Ago to Tap Achievers to Support Women, CSUF

March 12, 2007

By Russ Hudson

Patricia Boggs, senior director of development in University Advancement, helped start the Women and Philanthropy  group two years ago because she thought the time was right: Nearly 60 percent of students on campus, as in universities across the United States, are women, and more and more women are starting businesses, heading organizations and leading corporations, as well as becoming prominent in the arts, not only as artists, but as managers, agents and promoters.

 “But I saw other opportunities that motivated me as well, ” Boggs said. “First, we want to provide opportunities for successful women to connect with other talented, charismatic women leaders. Second, we want to engage prominent alumnae who value and support the mission of Cal State Fullerton and educate them on what the university is doing to develop future leaders.”

Collecting a Group
Boggs said the idea was to collect a group of thinkers and achievers who could help women and help the university on several fronts, not just to contribute money or help raise funds. It’s working, she said, citing a sampling of the members in the Fullerton group, many of whom graduated from CSU Fullerton:
·  Sandra Bell, (B.A. communications ’81), vice president and chief marketing officer of First American Corporation    
·  Marilyn Brewer, former member of the California Assembly
·  Annette Feliciani (B.A. business administration-finance ’80), president of AEF Systems Consulting, Inc.
·  Margaret McCarthy (B.A. political science ’84), owner, Paradigm Ventures LLC
·  Julie Miller-Phipps (B.A. sociology ’83), senior vice president and service area manager of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan Hospitals, Inc.
·  Kerri Ruppert (B.A. business administration-accounting ’82), senior vice president and chief financial officer of Children’s Hospital of Orange County
·  Joan Tang Waltman (B.S. electrical engineering ’85), president of QualComm Wireless Business Solutions
·  Julie Greiner Weiser (B.A. business administration-management ’75), chair and chief executive officer of Macy’s Florida
·  Linda Woolverton (M.A. theatre arts, ‘79), author of screenplay “Homeward Bound” and books “Beauty and the Beast, the Musical” and “Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida.”

“Women and Philanthropy engages its members in the campus community. We want people who are in positions of leadership to be good ambassadors for California State University, Fullerton,” Boggs said.

“We also want them to be able to share expertise with each other, mutually support each other, and to have access to good speakers, especially on issues relating to girls and women. We’ve had speakers on politics, health issues and being a powerful woman in society. The next presentation, in May, will be titled ‘Being Martha Stewart: How Society Views Women in Power.’

“Not all of the Women and Philanthropy members here are Fullerton alums, and not all are local. Some live across the country,” Boggs said. “But we all have the common goal of women taking leadership roles and being good role models.”