Alumni & Friends
Deborah L. Coffin Women's Center at Southern New Hampshire Universitywomenscenter@snhu.edu | 603-645-2793 |
Thursday, March 7, 2019 | Alumni Hall, Gustafson Center (SNHU, 2500 North River Road, Manchester, N.H.)
5:00 p.m. Welcome reception & networking5:30 p.m. Keynote: A Conversation with Representative Nika Elugardo 6:00 p.m. Panel discussion with SNHU international students & alumnae7:00 p.m. Virtual panel discussion with SNHU online students & alumnae (register online to watch the live stream)
Over the course of 20 years, Nika Elugardo has acted as a social change advocate in community and economic development, working with public, private and nonprofit leaders active in Black and Latino communities in Massachusetts. She founded the research and consulting departments at the Emmanuel Gospel Center, which has supported breakthrough models and collaboration in education, youth violence prevention, and anti-trafficking in Boston and other urban areas across Massachusetts. As a social change advocate, Nika has spent her robust career pioneering for opportunity, prosperity, and justice for all.
Samantha Aguilar Hernandez
Samantha Aguilar Hernandez is a film enthusiast, studying communication and film at SNHU. She is originally from Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, the same hometown as her role model, Guillermo del Toro. She works as a Marketing Manager and staff writer for the Arts & Entertainment section at the Penmen Press. She is also the Administrative Director and Social Media Manager at RadioSNHU as well as the host to the station’s podcast, “Animate My Day”. She aspires to become a famous actress and Executive Producer of animated shows for the area of Children Development such as Elena of Avalor and Miraculous Ladybug. She counts languages, musical theatre, video games, singing, and popcorn in her long list of passions.
Magdalene Stanley '17
Magdalene Stanley is a Nigerian-trained Economist who became an educationist because of her life experiences, which proved to her that education sets girls on a course to greater economic prospects and participation in their communities. As a girls’ education activist, her passion over the years has been to see her country Nigeria achieve gender parity in education. Nigeria is home to 20% of the worlds out of school children, and in Northern Nigerian states, the majority of out-of-school children are girls.
Magdalene is the founder and program director of the Maggie Stanley Teacher Foundation [MsTF], an organization that works with other nonprofits in Nigeria to challenge the socio-cultural practices that discriminate against girls, working to improve enrollment, retention, and completion rates. Here in the United States, Magdalene served as a volunteer in the preschool and middle school autism support program in the Manchester, NH School District, for more than three years. Magdalene has a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Abuja, Nigeria. She holds a Master of Education from Southern New Hampshire University and she is presently a doctoral student at the River University. Magdalene is fluent in six international languages and has a working proficiency in German language. She is married to Mr. Stanley Ogbu, a Nigerian-based entrepreneur, and together they are blessed with four beautiful children.
Raghda Weidknecht '16
Raghda Weidknecht is a case manager at Manchester Community Health Center. Her great passion is bringing healing and help to people who have been through life’s stressors, helping patients overcome challenges related to extreme poverty, chronic homelessness, veterans, immigration cases, and behavioral issues. Growing up poor taught Raghda that hard work and thrift are sometimes the only things a person can afford, and she came out of her experience as an advocate with a better understanding of empathy and connection for the women she works with who are victims of domestic violence or sexual assault. She believes in love, peace, and strong women.
Raghda holds a master’s degree in Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) from Southern New Hampshire University, and a Bachelor of Arts in English language and literature and a certificate from Temple University’s Dialogue Institute in religious pluralism.
She is training for her first half marathon and enjoys going on hikes, practicing Zumba, and planning for her next adventure with her husband.
Lydia Alonci ’18IT Project/Program Manager at Allstate Insurance Company
Lydia Alonci graduated from SNHU in 2018 with a B.S. in Information Technology. She is a mom of two preschoolers, and married to her husband of six years. After she had her second child, she combatted postpartum depression by setting the goal of getting a degree in IT and pursuing a career. She began her program at SNHU when her daughter was 1.5 years old and her son was 6 weeks old. SNHU sent her to the Grace Hopper Celebration in 2017, where she interviewed and received a job offer for a Project Manager position at Allstate. She and her family moved from NY to TX for the job in August 2018. She begins studying for her MBA in Information Technology Management at SNHU in March 2019.
Sarah LewisACCS Outreach Worker at Vinfen
Sarah Lewis is currently a student at Southern New Hampshire University in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program. Upon graduating with her bachelor’s degree from Mount Washington, she started a job at NFI as a Youth Counselor working with teens. Now, in her role at Vinfen, she works within the Psychiatric Rehabilitation branch, also known as Adult Clinical Community Services. She loves her job, and while there have been many ups and downs in her life, she always keeps pushing through. Her goal is to become a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, and she says that the best reward is the outcome from helping others.
Shajira J. MartinezSr. Business Intelligence Analyst at Belize Telemedia Ltd
Shajira is currently working as a Sr. Business Intelligence Analyst at Belize Telemedia Ltd. She is currently in her last two classes at SNHU and will soon earn her Bachelor of Science in Data Analytics.
Amy Williams ’16GProject Specialist at Mountain Association for Community Economic Development (MACED)
Amy Williams received her MS in Community Economic Development from SNHU in May 2016, and her BA in Russian Studies from Trinity University in 1990. While working in Information Technology, Amy wanted to change her career to reflect her passion for economic development. She joined the Peace Corps as a Business and Community Development Specialist in Armenia. After her service, she became a Kiva Fellow in Armenia and Georgia, where she met with entrepreneurs and improved systems for micro-business lending. She then started to work on her master's degree at SNHU, and worked for Oikocredit USA in Washington, DC. She did her master's thesis project in the DC area with the Hyattsville Community Development Center, designing and implementing a project to match underutilized commercial buildings with start-up businesses. In 2016, she joined MACED as a Project Specialist and works in 20 Appalachian counties with entrepreneurs and communities helping to build sustainable businesses in the region.
Kayla Zagieboylo ’14Communications Specialist, Digital Communications at MilliporeSigma (formerly EMD Millipore)
Kayla Zagieboylo joined MilliporeSigma (formerly EMD Millipore) in 2015 as part of the Integration Planning team for the acquisition of Sigma-Aldrich. She has focused on digital communication channels, including social media and customer-facing websites, and now manages the internal digital communications strategy for MilliporeSigma. In 2018, Kayla took a short international assignment at the corporate headquarters of MilliporeSigma’s parent company, Merck KGaA, in Darmstadt, Germany, to help with the mobile app for internal communications. Prior to MilliporeSigma, Kayla worked at John Hancock for nearly eight years, including two years as a one-woman marketing department for the annuities business. Kayla graduated cum laude from SNHU with a bachelor’s degree in business studies in 2014.
For GPS directions, use the address 2500 North River Road, Hooksett, NH 03106, or view a Google Map. Visitors to campus may park in lot 26-C, located within a short walking distance to the Dining Center. Please reference our Parking Lot Designations Map for more details.
Please indicate any accessibility needs when you register for this event, and a member of our staff will contact you. Or, you may contact us at alumni@snhu.edu or 603-645-9799 with any questions.
Refreshments will be available, with some options that are vegetarian and/or free of common allergens. If you have severe allergies or specific dietary requirements, please contact womenscenter@snhu.edu.
Many thanks to our sponsors and partner organizations who made this event possible:
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