Nominations are open for Austin College’s Athena Award and Athena Young Professional Award. The College’s Center for Community and Regional Development and its Texoma Women Get Connected program will recognize two exemplary leaders with the prestigious ATHENA Leadership Award® and the ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award at a luncheon on Friday, April 24.
Nominations will be accepted for the 2020 awards until March 1, with completion of the online ATHENA Leadership Awards® Nomination Form. Local honorees may represent either the for-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.
Event sponsors and table sponsors are needed for the event. Learn more from the Sponsor Information Sheet. For more information, please contact Cary Wacker at 903.813.2042.
The ATHENA Leadership Award® is presented to individuals who actively assist women in realizing their full leadership potential, have attained and embody the highest level of professional excellence in their business or profession, and devote time and energy to improve the quality of life for others in the community.
ATHENA Young Professional Leadership nominees are emerging women leaders under age 40 who clearly serve as role models for young women both personally and professionally; demonstrate excellence, creativity, and initiative in their business or profession; and provide valuable service to improve the quality of life for others in their community.
Since 2014, the ATHENA Award recipients are 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), Michelle Castle, branch manager at Guild Mortgage Company (2017), Luann Daniel, executive director of Women Rock (2018) and Sandy Barber, executive director of Fannin County Children’s Center (2019).
The ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award has honored Michelle Lemming, president and CEO of Texoma Health Foundation (2014), Hillary Luckett Clark, a Sherman attorney and community leader (2016), Trish Bridges, director of critical care services at Wilson N. Jones Regional Medical Center (2017), Amber Pilcher, banking services manager and regional retail manager for Landmark Bank Denison (2018) and Tiffany Dancer, clinical director for Child and Family Guidance Center of Texoma (2019). A full list of previous recipients is available online.
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 7,000 awards have been presented in the U.S. and around the world since the program’s inception in 1982.
Austin College was founded in 1849 and is the oldest institution of higher education in Texas operating under original name and charter. During the 2018-2019 academic year, the campus celebrated 100 years of co-education and continues to host events commemorating women and their achievements.