A contingent of Saunders students attended the Grace Hopper Celebration, November 4 through November 7, in Chicago, IL. The event is “the world’s largest gathering of women in tech, bringing together thousands of women from across the globe to learn, network, and celebrate their achievements.” They were accompanied by Rose Thomas, Saunders Academic Advisor.
The attendees were:
- Muskan Gupta ’25 (MBA)
- Tabiha Rahman (management information systems)
- Dhanalakshmi Maheswaran ’25 (MS accounting and analytics)
- Anastasiya Tsikh ’26 (finance)
- Nagwa Bengyella Fokunang (management information systems)
- Margaret Birmingham (management information systems, global business)
- Shuanglin Huang ’27 (accounting)
- Marina Lui ’27 (management information systems)
- Lavanya Kapoor ’25 (MS business analytics)
- Lily Lin ’28 (business exploration)
On November 4, attendees were joined for dinner by RIT alumni Stacey Wronkowski, vice president of digital technology at United Airlines; Erin Sarofsky ’99 (BFA) ’01 (MFA) Owner, Executive Creative Director, and Director of Sarofsky; and Madeline Dunham, '23 (management information systems) consulting senior analyst at Accenture.
The attendees reflected on their experience:
Dhanalakshmi Maheswaran
“It was inspiring to see thousands of Women technologists under one roof. Especially in a city like Chicago that stands as a living example of how intention and grit can be transformed into a legacy of community, showing the world what shared effort and hope can achieve.”
Maggie Birmingham
“'The future of AI isn't about replacing people, it's about empowering the people who know how to use it!’ That was one of the many incredible takeaways from the Grace Hopper Celebration (GHC), the world’s largest gathering of women in technology, of which I had the opportunity to attend this past week. Surrounded by thousands of brilliant, passionate individuals, I left feeling incredibly inspired and empowered about where I fit in the tech world.”
Tahiba Rahman
“This was my first time attending the Grace Hopper Celebration, and what an experience it was. The conference was busy, energizing, and incredibly inspiring. Being surrounded by thousands of women and gender-minorities in tech from all walks of life reminded me that our journeys are unique, but our drive to build, learn, and create connects us.”
Nagwa Fokunang
“As a woman in technology, being in spaces that celebrate women’s contributions and amplify diverse voices has meant a great deal to me. I found community, mentorship, and endless motivation to keep pushing boundaries and helping open doors for those coming after me.”
To learn more about the experience, see Dhana Maheswaran’s blog, Unbound in Chicago.
