Nominations will be accepted for the 2018 awards until February 12, with completion of the online ATHENA Leadership Award® Nomination Form and the ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award Nomination Form at www.austincollege.edu/athena-leadership-award.
Local honorees may represent either the profit or not-for-profit sector and must work and reside in Fannin, Cooke, or Grayson counties. Past award recipients are not eligible to receive the award, though previous nominees may be nominated again.
The ATHENA Leadership Award® is presented to individuals who have attained and embody the highest level of professional excellence in their business or profession, devote time and energy to improve the quality of life for others in the community, and actively assist women in realizing their full leadership potential.
ATHENA Young Professional Leadership nominees are emerging women leaders who demonstrate excellence, creativity, and initiative in their business or profession; provide valuable service to improve the quality of life for others in their community; and clearly serve as role models for young women both personally and professionally.
Event sponsors and table sponsors are needed for the event. Learn more from the Sponsor Information Sheet that’s also on the website. Event sponsorships benefit the College’s Social Entrepreneurship for Poverty Alleviation (SEPA) summer intern program. For more information, please contact Trish Jennings at 903.813.2041.
Since 2014, the ATHENA Award has honored Stacy Rake Murphy, owner and principal agent of Nationwide Insurance in Sherman (2014), Brenda Hayward, executive director of Child and Family Guidance Center of Texoma (2016), and Michelle Castle, branch manager at Guild Mortgage Company (2017). The ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award has honored Michelle Lemming, president and CEP of Texoma Health Foundation (2014), Hillary Luckett Clark, a Sherman attorney and Sherman Independent School District board member (2016), and Trish Bridges, director of critical care services at Wilson N. Jones Regional Medical Center (2017). No awards were given in 2015.
The ATHENA Leadership Award Program is administered by ATHENA International, a non-profit women’s leadership organization, along with licensed host organizations and sponsors. Over 6,000 awards have been presented in the U.S. and around the world since the program’s inception in 1982. Recent recipients include Condoleezza Rice, Billie Jean King, Pat Summit, and Gabby Giffords.
Austin College, a private national liberal arts college located north of Dallas in Sherman, Texas, has earned a reputation for excellence in academic preparation, international study, pre-professional foundations, leadership development, committed faculty, and hands-on, adventurous learning opportunities. One of 40 schools profiled in Loren Pope’s influential book Colleges That Change Lives, Austin College boasts a welcoming community that embraces diversity and individuality, with more than 40 percent of students representing ethnic minorities. A residential student body of approximately 1,275 students and a faculty of more than 100 allow a 13:1 student-faculty ratio and personalized attention. The College is related by covenant to the Presbyterian Church (USA) and cultivates an inclusive atmosphere that supports students’ faith journeys regardless of religious tradition. Founded in 1849, the College is the oldest institution of higher education in Texas operating under original name and charter.