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Women, Interrupted…

How COVID-19 Impacted the Year-Long Celebration

A s we find ourselves saying of so many things lately, our 50 Years of Women celebration didn’t end quite as we hoped or planned.

Our celebration did begin on a high note when back on September 21, 2019, over 175 alumnae and friends gathered to reminisce and pay special tribute to Iona’s trailblazers—alumnae from the classes of 1973-1978. Trailblazer and keynote speaker Rita Mabli ’74, ’76MBA noted, “Attending Iona was life-changing for me. As a proud alumna, I am delighted to be in the company of such a dynamic group of powerful, diverse and inspiring women.”

With a robust program for the spring in place, including the Trustees Scholarship Award Gala honoring fourteen exceptional alumnae for their accomplishments in career and community and a celebration of sisterhood highlighting our long tradition of sororities and student groups, COVID-19 reared its ugly head and shut down the country

No one could have imagined in the fall of 1969, when Iona welcomed its first female students, that 50 years later, the country would be embroiled in a pandemic causing thousands of lives to be lost, a faltering economy and practically an entire population shifted to learning and working virtually.

While we all continue to fight the good fight, we do it on the shoulders of those who came before us, and share our strength with those who will come after.

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