Augustana College's 2024 cohort of the Brenda Barnes Leadership Academy
ROCK ISLAND, ILLINOIS (November 6, 2024) — Twenty-eight students joined the second cohort of the Brenda Barnes Leadership Academy. The BBLA is a program geared toward providing mentorship and leadership development for high-achieving, first-year female students.
Brenda Czajka Barnes ('75) was a trailblazing leader and advocate for women's empowerment, recognized for her remarkable career as the president and CEO of influential companies like Pepsi-Cola and Sara Lee. Barnes generously devoted her time, talents, and resources to the college, including serving on the Augustana Board of Trustees for sixteen years, so that Augustana students could enjoy the same transformative experience she had.
The members of the BBLA carry on Barnes' legacy of leadership, service, and excellence by engaging in community-building events and mentorship experiences to help them become leaders.
This semester, the cohort will participate in six sessions revolving around networking, emotional intelligence, authenticity, mentorship, and more. Students will have many opportunities to connect with each other, their mentor, community leaders, and President [Andrea] Talentino.
This year's cohort includes:
Bella Lamb of Rock Island (61201)
Lauren Groene of Milan (61264)
Maggie Kelley of Port Byron (61275)
Vanessa Gerardo of East Moline (61244)
A private college of the liberal-arts and sciences, Augustana enrolls 2,500 students on a 115-acre residential campus in the Quad Cities (pop 470,000) along the Mississippi River. Augustana prioritizes engaged learning in 100 majors, minors, and other academic programs, building each student's potential through customized success teams, hands-on learning,170 student organizations, and 28 NCAA DIII athletic teams. The college also serves forty graduate-level students in a fully-accredited Master of Science in speech language-pathology program. Augustana's location and community partnerships provide students access to internships, jobs, student teaching, and research opportunities.
