ArtsWestchester to Host Career Panel Discussion on “Take Your Child to Work Day,” April 28

New York State Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins to moderate discussion with female business leaders.

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (April 21, 2016) – In recognition of “Take Your Child to Work Day” on Thursday, April 28, ArtsWestchester is hosting a program to inspire young adults to reach their career goals. As an extension of ArtsWestchester’s spring exhibit, SHE: Deconstructing Female Identity, the event will feature female leaders from a cross-section of area businesses who will talk about their career paths and how to succeed.

The career panel, will take place at the ArtsWestchester gallery in White Plains on Thursday, April 28 from 6-8pm against the backdrop of SHE, an exhibit that features work by 11 female artists from New York who explore female identity and feminism.

Titled “When I Grow Up, I Want to Be…,” the event will be moderated by New York State Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins and the featured panelists include: Kaitlyn Corbett, Nuclear Engineer at Entergy; Nancy Silberkleit, Co-CEO at Archie Comic Publications; Preya Ananthakrishnan, MD, Director of Breast Surgery at White Plains Hospital Center for Cancer Care; Shari Mason, Senior Vice President – Financial Advisor at RBC Wealth Management; and Hope Salley, Senior Account Executive at Thompson & Bender.

“Today, women are an important part of the workforce. Westchester is home to a wealth of female leaders and role models, working in all industries from biotech to the arts, politics to finance, medicine to law. We are so pleased to have such a remarkable group of powerful female professionals to inspire young girls – and boys – to reach their full potential. With this program, we hope to convey to young people that they can choose whichever career path that interests them, despite any challenges they face along the way,” said Janet Langsam, CEO of ArtsWestchester.

About the Speakers:

New York State Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins was born and raised in New York to parents that encouraged a life grounded in education and service. Since the very beginning of her tenure in government, Andrea Stewart-Cousins has espoused the values of empathy, empowerment and civic engagement. These values, along with her strong belief in advocating for the underserved and championing the needs of working families, has distinguished her as a trailblazer in local and State government. Stewart-Cousins is a strong advocate for human rights; quality education; accessible and affordable health care; and making government more efficient, transparent and accountable to all citizens.

Kaitlyn Corbett began working at Entergy’s James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant in Oswego County right after college  and spent two years as the chairperson of Young Generation in Nuclear. She is now an engineer at the Indian Point facility, where she monitors plant conditions and does prep work for the plant’s annual  refueling and maintenance outages. Corbett is currently the chairman of the local Women  in Nuclear organization.

Nancy Silberkleit is Co-CEO of Archie Comic Publications, one of the most successful, longest-running brands in the history of the comic industry. Silberkleit’s vision is that the comic book, as a graphic novel, is a valuable tool for developing literacy among first-time readers and instilling a love of reading in everyone. As a former public art school teacher, she knows the importance of literacy; her motto is “Children + Comic Books = Reading, Knowledge, Confidence and Creativity.”

Dr. Preya Ananthakrishnan is an experienced, board-certified breast surgeon at White Plains Hospital Center for Cancer Care. She has a special interest in oncoplastic surgery, and sees patients with both benign and malignant breast disease. Dr. Ananthakrishnan is the author of numerous publications on breast cancer surgery. She is board certified in surgery and is a Fellow in the American College of Surgeons and a member of the American Society of Breast Surgeons and Society of Surgical Oncology.

Shari Mason is a senior vice president-financial advisor with RBC Wealth Management. She joined RBC Wealth Management in 2008. Shari began her career in the financial services industry in 1982. She spent 12 years with Lehman Brothers in various fixed income positions including fixed income analyst and national sales director. In 1994, Shari joined Neuberger Berman as a wealth manager working primarily with high net worth individuals and small to mid-sized institutions.

Hope Salley is a Senior Account Executive at Thompson & Bender, which delivers full-service campaigns for its clients including public relations, marketing and advertising. In her role, Salley helps to elevate public relations campaigns she leads for her clients. Since joining Thompson & Bender in 2013, Hope has helped secure stories for her clients in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, on Fox 5’s Good Day New York and other media outlets. Prior to her career in public relations, Salley was a journalist for publications in Westchester County, including the Journal News and the Westchester County Business Journal.

ArtsWestchester is located at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue in White Plains, N.Y.  This event is free. Registration is required. To register, visit artsw.org/whenigrowup or call 914-428-4220. SHE: Deconstructing Female Identity will be on view through Saturday, June 25.  ArtsWestchester gallery hours are Tuesday through Friday, 12-5pm and Saturday, 12-6pm. For more information, visit: artsw.org/she