Rising senior attends leadership conference

Rising senior Kristin Richey is the fourth Erskine student selected in the last five years to attend the National Conference for College Women Student Leaders (NCCWSL).

In previous years, Erskine students who attended the conference received scholarship funds from the South Carolina American Association of University Women. This year’s attendee received her scholarship from the Due West Branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW).

Professor Emerita of Biology Dr. Janice Haldeman, who serves as president of the Due West Branch, said, “Our branch had been ‘saving up’ to send a student. We’d hoped at some point to have a State winner and then also send one with Branch funds so there could be two students.”

As it turned out, the state organization did not send a student to NCCWSL this year, but Kristin, a chemistry major who serves as vice president of the Erskine chapter of the American Chemical Society (ACS), was happy to travel to the University of Maryland, College Park, for the 2017 conference, where she enjoyed meeting young women from various backgrounds.

“It was amazing,” Kristin said. “All the women there were sweet and helpful, and I feel like I have made some lifelong friends from this conference.”

The speakers at the conference were “phenomenal, especially at the Women of Distinction Ceremony,” Kristin said.

Women of Distinction named at the 2017 conference included Danielle Feinberg, director of photography for lighting at Pixar; Amanda Nguyen, president and founder of Rise, a nonprofit organization focused on the civil rights of survivors of sexual assault and rape; Rosie Rios, 43rd treasurer of the United States; and Crystal Valentine, author and poet.

“The experience was truly a blessing, and I am honored I was chosen as the candidate to represent Erskine College.”

Photo at top shows Kristin Richey, far right, posing with friends she met at the conference.