By SARAH CLARK
News Editor
As the ribbon of the Michelle Cuozzo Borisenok ‘80 House was cut, BOLD leaders, cohort members, and spectators erupted with applause to officially dedicate the house and welcome a new institute on campus.
On Nov. 1, a ribbon cutting and ceremony was held in honor of the house that Michelle Cuozzo Borisenok, a graduate of The College of Saint Rose, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, and her husband, Walt, funded for the BOLD Women’s Leadership Network, an organization owned by The Pussycat Foundation dedicated to giving women networking and growth opportunities. The Borisenoks gave the College $1.2 million to renovate 1020 Madison Ave. for the new program.
“When the idea of building the institute… it was something that was a piece of me that I wanted to contribute to,” said Borisenok. She said that seeing the execution of the house was meaningful to her because of her close ties to the college. “I mean it’s just, it’s an honor.”
The dedication was also a chance for the cohorts to showcase what they are bringing to campus and what the institute offers the College.
“To be surrounded by so many who care about the opening of this building and who are committed to developing women and leadership is truly a gift and blessing,” said Carolyn Stefanco, the president of the College, during the program.
Stefanco became the 11th president of Saint Rose in 2014 and recently received a Helen Gurley Brown Genius Grant. She is also on the board of trustees for the American University in Bulgaria, and she is a board member of the International Leadership Association, the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, and the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities.
The College is one of six in the nation that has the BOLD program, and they receive a $1.1 million grant for the Network. The grant supports the operation of the Network in the college, and those who are accepted for the program at Saint Rose have the remaining tuition costs eliminated and their room and board is free.
“I am so looking forward to tomorrow,” said Yolanda Caldwell, the Inaugural Director of the Women’s Leadership Institute and BOLD Women’s Leadership Network. “I am so excited to see others who are going to partner with us, to join with us, I am so excited to see the students who are going to come and try to find more information and find out how to participate and get engaged with the programs here.”
In order to receive the grant, the president of the college must be a woman “who has demonstrated commitment to diversity and inclusion throughout her career, and has significant administrative leadership experience,” according to Stefanco.
“The college was invited to join the BOLD Women’s Leadership Network,” said Caldwell. “This building is a manifestation of that commitment to create a space for the advancement of women and their allies, that they courageously step into leadership roles in their personal or professional lives.”
The first floor is a space where the women in the program can meet, plan, and execute ideas for their projects for the Network, and the second floor of the house is where the seniors of the first cohort live.
“It is a place where women can be themselves and develop fully without financial limitations,” said Borisenok. She also said how grateful their family is to support a “unique project supporting the advancement of women leaders and the BOLD scholars.”
The BOLD Women’s Leadership Network has offered the students who were accepted opportunities to grow with each other and receive opportunities to enhance their professional practices.
The women have learned a variety of skills including the different types of leadership, however, one skill they learned is not often taught in the classroom.
“I think the most important thing is being authentic to who you are,” said Hannah Deetz, a BOLD scholar in the 2021 cohort. “A good leader is not a good leader without being authentic. Being authentic means that you’re true to yourself, and when you’re true to yourself you’re true to the people that you work with.”
Stefanco commented on the women in both of the cohorts and their intelligence.However, she declined to have the interview recorded.
Caldwell has seen the scholars try new things and create a space for themselves that they might not have had the opportunity to have before.
“I have definitely seen the scholars take new steps,” said Caldwell. “It’s humbling to know that a word that you said, an opportunity that you thought of, a speaker that was invited in was the catalyst to seeing them make some different choices in their lives.
